Skip to main content

MY GREY JOURNEY

 

“She’s your daughter,” my husband’s acquaintance asked him when I met him for the first time while we waited for our turn at a shop. I giggled at his joke and marveled at his judgment of my age. That was when I was dark-haired. A few years later, my hair started to turn grey. 

We often visited a complex together regularly, so regularly that the guard could identify the two of us. The irony struck when my husband had to travel alone. Then the guard asked, “Mummy Ji has not come today.” I laughed at the cruel joke. It is not that I mind going old: I do mind looking old, so aptly said by someone, I thought.

 

I had the usual concerns as someone in the fourth decade. I was beginning to hide that lock of silver hair so conspicuous on my scalp. It has been a source of pride for all the years spent well. I found myself reminiscing about the hair. I felt great about the comparisons I had.

A decade later, I was going ahead with a natural balayage without a penny spent. The lockdown was a blessing in disguise when I could mask my hair with a head cap and miraculously escape those glances, the turning heads, and the smiles. I wondered if accepting the ash color was as similar to the red, blue, green, or bleached tones. I presumed they drew the same responses. Most people I knew did not appreciate my silver transformation, but a select few encouraged me.

I had a proverbial warning of a changed look from Mother after the night. My sister felt I would have an elderly look. My nieces excitedly said not to be bothered by mom and grandma's skepticism you will do great. My husband and sons said your head, your hair, your choice, you can always make a comeback. A few months later, I had a striped scalp. I was going cold turkey.

Precisely, this journey was not a cakewalk. I learned to deal with my feelings and other's opinions, to ignore and to be patient. I even chronicled my (un)illustrious journey in my picture gallery. And now, even the girls in the cosmetic section never ask if I need hair color.

PS My mother told me today to attach my grey-haired picture that she had appreciated in the family tree.

 

Comments

  1. i shared your views with my better half she admired your Grey's and plans to walk that path some days.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Very well expressed, the journey everyone has to go through, sooner or later 👌

    ReplyDelete
  3. Grey hair are actually wisdom highlights that only deserve to be flaunted. 👏

    ReplyDelete
  4. A very true picture of aging,yes very few have the courage to accept and go on.i believe I admire you that way.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Mamiji i was also sailing in the same boat of grey hair infact since my 30's. Since then i used to hide with brown or burgundy and recently I wanted some change hence got my hair highlighted and everyone complimented my new look. But at the back of my it was running....what next. I was talking to my friend with similar concerns and decided next will be salt and pepper that will ultimately end up with the natural grey matured and prideful look. Today your journey has given me a step ahead confidence.
    Congratulations for an apt article that is many of ours journey too, necklaced so beautifully with beads of instances and words.

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Flipping Pages, Flipping Fates, My Tippan Moment

  My call was gladly received by my sister, who was in the midst of a monotonous job of setting a question paper for her students. She needed a distraction, and I willingly obliged. These days, we enjoy our telephone conversations more than usual. The reason is that we dwell upon the stories from the past that have been handed down to us from our previous generations. They are not stories of valor passed down the generations in musical forms to infuse courage. They seem like tall stories stretched by imagination, not only to us but also to innocent bystanders. These have become so believable to us by being repeated many times during our family reunions. The stomach-churning laughter they induce keeps those anecdotes so lively until today. Tippan Chacha (uncle) was a guest who came from far away to take a departmental examination for promotion in the city where my grandparents lived. Our grandparents were glad to have him visit them. As for one of their broods, my mother, younger th...

WHATSAPP FORWARDS

"You will not read any of my WhatsApp messages and so it is useless to send you anything.” My mother said to me. I acknowledged her by my silence mentally reciting," I read all that you sent to me". So, here I am busy reading all about Indian spices and medicinal herbs used as daily household ingredients, thereby indulging in more studies on naturopathy as compared to any other ‘pathy’ which has side effects. I speed dialled my mother when my patient refused to undergo the procedure of scaling to clean her teeth in favour of 'alum', or "phitkari," a desi nuskha. No wonder patients shirk away from scaling. I ruminate. "I just called you up to confirm if you WhatsApped something to my patient "I vented. Ever since, I have been scrolling through all her erstwhile messages to know more about natural healthier medicaments, their benefits and roles in dentistry and health. Oh! WhatsApp was not there when I was a student. No wonder, my gold ...

World Book Day

Usha Vance became the Second Lady of the United States, following JD Vance, her husband ’s election as Vice President. An accomplished attorney and the first Asian-American holding the position. Last week, she occupied the center stage in India. A lot was talked about the book Iliad, which  she carried during the campaign for her husband. What interested me was neither of them, but her title. It reminded me of something I had read years ago. Irving Wallace’s THE SECOND LADY. In our younger days, we frequented libraries and often the shops at Janpath in Delhi to buy reasonably priced paperbacks or second-hand books. My sister and I visited our chachi to borrow her library books. She would recommend them, much like Goodreads . Those were not the times of the internet, and recommendations always came from word of mouth. I remember her narration of the political thriller. “ The first lady of the United States is abducted during a state visit to Moscow and replaced by a Russian actr...