You already know my guest today as the co-host of #iPPP and the writer at the Sunday Spill. Sarah is a fellow mom of four little ones, and wears many, many hats (wife, mom, photographer, doula, waterbirth expert, childbirth educator, writer). She’s the very inspirational blogger behind the self-portait a day project, in which she is personally taking a self-portrait every day for a year. She writes things that make me think, and laugh, and cry.
Sarah is smart, funny, cool and calm. I’m so happy to have her as an online friend (and hopefully, someday, and in-real-life friend, too). Thank you for taking time out to be here today, Sarah!
What’s this?
My hair stylist shut off the dryer and held out a much, much shorter chunk of hair underneath the long layers she’d just trimmed for me. What happened? I meant to ask you about it earlier when I was putting the dye on. So, breakage?
I looked at her in the mirror standing behind me. No… I began. No….. I cut it myself. I stammered. I had to. It’s kind of embarrassing. But. That shorter piece is the result from a mistake I made almost a year ago. Last April.
She stood looking at me. Wondering. Waiting for something further.
I had to cut it because…because I’d watched this You Tube video and I was all inspired to try a dread lock I hurried up and spit out. So I did. I tried one dread lock.
There. I’d said it. I waited for my hair stylist to laugh. I had plans to laugh it off as well if that was the case. But she didn’t. Instead, she nodded her head and waited for me to continue.
Actually, I said, I had plans to dread my whole head. But I wanted to try just one. Underneath. You know? In case it didn’t work out. 
Well friends, I’ll snub out the lingering suspense and tell you it didn’t work out. No one liked that ratted up, knotted, waxed piece of my hair. My kids asked me what was up. My husband hated it. My younger brother (in his early twenties) saw my dread lock and was like, why? Why a dread lock Sarah? Can’t you just clip a feather into your hair instead? My own mother asked me if I was having a crisis. A crisis! Because of a dread lock. I believe she even referenced Britney Spears and the whole shaved head incident. Say wha?!
To be fair I understood a smidge where they were all coming from. A dread lock on a thirty year old caucasian woman rocking preschool pickup day to day is a little unexpected.
But I’m a believer that sometimes the unexpected things in life turn out to be fantastic. Beautiful and poetic even.
Sometimes however, the unexpected things, big or little, just fizzle. They flop. You pronounce them duds. And in the end I did pronounce my dread lock a dud. Not because of what my well-meaning family was saying, but rather because I grew tired of that lock. I just wanted to shampoo and brush my hair as I had before. In the end it came down to practicality.
But I want to let you know that the duds are alright too. Sometimes with one fell swoop of your scissors–you cut out the whole mess you made. You throw it in the garbage.
You wait for the regrowth, the chance to one day share your story, and laugh about it all then.
You can find Sarah at her blog, The Sunday Spill, Facebook, Twitter, and Pinterest.
thanks for having me Greta! I had to laugh at waterbirth expert. hahaha. that one seriously tickled me. one day friend we will meet in real life. I'm certain. Such an honor to be your feature. thank you thank you!
Two of my favourite people in one place! Yay!
This is a great story, Sarah. As usual there is so much meaning in what you write.
Love it.
hey kerstin! yup, sometimes it's as easy as cutting out a chunk of your hair. other times can be a little bit more involved and painful. luckily this time it didn't hurt
You tried it. It didn't work out. Like my dad said, better to have tried and failed, than fail to try.
absolutely Alison. I'm always up for trying something at least once….unless it's something that's just incredibly dangerous or disgusting. Then I usually say no
But hair? Sure why not.
I agree that the unexpected can be beautiful – you never know if you don't try, right?
exactly. sometimes you just have to give it a whirl!
I can SO relate! I actually had dreadlocks in college. I was a super hippy following phish across the country. It started with one dread in my hair. Everybody made fun of my one dread that was ahead of my others. I loved it! But I was also about to graduate college and my parents kept yelling about how I was never going to get a job with dreads. So I also had to chop my hair off! Sucked.
Fast forward to last year, I added a big chunk of pink to my hair. Again my husband made fun of me. Said nobody with kids has pink hair. I wore it well but when I went back I decided not to get it again. I don't know if it was bc my husband didn't like it.. Or what! But at least I tried! And so did you!!
aw man. I would have for sure hung out with you in college. I mean, I'd hang out with you know too, but I think your hippy self and I would have gotten along
I bet the pink hair was cool! I'm proud of us for being a little unconventional 
I tried to do dreadlocks and those little tiny braids in my hair when I was in high school. Can't say either looked great but that didn't stop me from trying.
i was always a little jealous of the people i knew who would come back from beachy vacations and have their hair braided. i never had that experience. poor me right? I wish dreads looked good on me. my fine hair just flat out refused to cooperate.
Confession: If I didn't have a corporate job, I'd dye a bright blue streak in my hair. Why not?
Loved the story, Sarah!
blue streak, I love it. I had a blue streak in college. When it faded though, it just looked gray. no bueno. I bet you could rock it! Too bad about the corporate job eh?
At least you tried. Not everyone can say that.
hahaha. I suppose Jennifer. And hey at least it was just one so I didn't have to buzz my head
THAT would have really been a sight.
I always play around with my hair. I used to have the craziest hair colors just because I felt like it. I've been keeping it very short and have been trying to grow it out but it never takes… so yeah, I snip it off and start over!!!!
I used to have short hair too! I've never really been afraid to experiment with it. It grows back. It's just hair. People get all worked up about it sometimes. And that's a little silly.
I did the mushroom cut perm once.
We have to experiment, if we didn't how would we know?
(I'm picturing a little piece of poo kind of placed in your hair btw)
In middle school I begged to have permed hair. I wanted it super permed! but my fine hair just came out wavy. Yay for experimentation!
Ha! Love that your mom thought the dread was a sign of a deeper Brittany Spears issue. Keep experimenting! It wil make your kids so normal!
that is SO reassuring to hear you say my kids will turn out alright maybe even better because of my weird ways. Thanks!
I have to admit, I woulda been all, "what's up with the one dread?" too. Lol! I just love that photo. You are cute and a wonderful storyteller.
xo
hee hee. I know right? go big or go home. one dread was measly.
I love this! My mom would totally ask me if I was having a crisis too.
Last year, just after we moved, I got a feather put in my hair. I took it out when it started to grow out too much, because I wasn't sure a feather on a 37-year-old was really all that cool. But I liked it for a while. I'd love to do something funky and different with my hair. Sometimes you just gotta experiment!
you did the feather! that's awesome. when my brother suggested a feather I was all I'M NOT KESHA. haha. it IS fun to switch things up. Why do we let age dictate so much?
[...] some extra time? Come visit me over at Greta’s Place. She invited me to be a part of her Great Expectations series and I couldn’t be happier to [...]
Ha loved this. Now that I'm forty I'm thinking about a nose ring…. Should I? Hmmm
you should. you totally should. my friend has just the tiniest little silver stud. it's barely noticeable but it suits her and I think it's fab. TRY IT.
I’m partial to the colored extensions, especially in blond hair. You know – like a few extensions of cobalt blue? I don’t mind dreads, even on Caucasians, and even older women (think Anne Lamott who came by them honestly) but it has to really work with the lifestyle and personality of the person.
I love Anne Lamott. She kicks some major ass. Definitely has to fit lifestyle and personality righto!
I adore your optimism- white 30s mommys with dreads! The closet I get is when I "forget" to brush my hair somedays… (In reality, I just don't want to!)
Haha. Yep I've done that too where I keep putting my hair up without brushing it…and then eventually I get to it, but it's such a tangled mess. like one HUGE dread.
Oh Sarah, what a gem of a lesson all wrapped up in a dreadlock story! Well done, woman! xo
I love finding a lesson tucked away in the little mundane things
Thanks Galit xoxo