Bald is beautiful

Next Friday, I am shaving my head for St. Baldrick's. This was something I had been thinking about over the past few weeks, and finally I just decided to go for it. St Baldrick's is such an amazing cause, and raises so much money for research for childhood cancer. I know we all know people who have been affected by cancer. One of my friends and classmates that I graduated with from grade school died of leukemia in September 2010 after a four-year-long battle. She was such a vibrant person, so full of life and never afraid to speak her mind. I saw her undergo chemotherapy and go bald, something she was very self-conscious about. Which leads me to my main point here.

When I started telling people that I was shaving my head for St Baldrick's, I received a wide variety of responses. Many people were very supportive, and many have donated money to the cause. After the initial shock, my mother has been very supportive and encouraging. But others have not been so supportive. A few guys I know have not been so kind about it. They have said offensive things about me looking like a dude soon, or that now I'll have to start wearing makeup and jewelry and dressing more feminine. I'm not stupid. I know that I will definitely look a lot different. But the fact that some males have decided that my femininity is based on the amount of hair I have offends me. That is the exact opposite of St. Baldrick's mission. They work to prove that bald IS beautiful, that a woman, or even a man should not be defined by how much hair they have. There is something wrong when it is considered okay by our culture to judge someone and make assumptions about them based simply on the length of their hair.