Metamorphosis

8 months since the day I chopped it all away  

The strands I believed made me more human, more enchanting.

The strands that waited to be discarded

But hung on so tightly for life.

They made me feel invincible

As if nothing could slow me down.

It is unexplainable

The things that straight hair makes you believe.

8 long months since the day I lay bare my hidden imperfections.

Where beneath this mane of wonder and magic lie a girl with scant esteem.

It was not easy finding beauty in a face I did not believe was mine,

As my beauty was found in the hair that covered my strange ears,

large nose,

grand forehead.

8 long months since I embarked on a journey of love and light

That makes you cry and wonder why

You don’t feel as beautiful as you once did.

8 months since the day I cut off the symbol of the past.

These same strands that stood atop my head during the hardest times.

Still remnant of the most painful parts of life,

The first argument and the first set of tears.

8 great months since I embarked on a journey of sufficiency.

Creating a person of different substance

With power and grace given through the struggle

Of learning a new definition of beauty.

Every day black women use hair as a form of metamorphosis

To return to the woman God created

To let go of what we know

To stand on something stronger

Than the expectations of society.