I caught a glimpse of myself in the mirror today at work and realized (not for the first time) that there will absolutely not be a single brown hair on my head by the time I hit 40 in a mere 5 years time. That's how fast I'm going gray these days. I don't really bemoan getting gray hair - for one thing, I've been going gray since I was 18 and to be honest, a lot of men my age don't have the luxury of even having hair to begin with, so I try not to bitch too much about it.
But still, there is something about it - a little reminder every day that you're not getting any younger. And I'm not one of these people that pines for their younger days. As I've said before, I really am enjoying my 30s and every year really does get better. I look back on my 20s with a little bit of a head shake and a "sheesh" under my breath. I'm healthier, both mentally and physically now than I was then, and I am certainly one hell of a lot wiser than I was in my 20s. At least that's what I like to think.
I think the thing that's hardest about growing older is that the older I get, the more I remember my parents being this age - and I'm certainly not as old as them, right? I remember my dad turning 40 - my mom putting one of his grade school pictures in the paper and wishing him a happy birthday. I remember watching his transformation from a man with a head full of brown hair to a head full of gray hair - and I think mine's happening a lot faster than his did. He thinks it's on about the same timeline, but I swear it's happening faster.
I wish I had a good picture of my gray hair, but alas, I don't have anything recent that really demonstrates my point well. In truth, I'm a little bit fond of my gray hair as it really behaves better than my brown hair - which is all curly and unruly at times. My gray hair is coming in a lot straighter which makes for some interesting mornings - some of the hair wanting to just lay in place magically while some of it refuses. It also gives me a bit of George Clooney-ish look which is certainly not at ALL bad. And plus, Heidi really likes it, so who the hell cares what anyone else thinks.
I know that I'll never color it - that's just WAY too much maintenance. So I embrace it - like I'm trying to do with so much of my life these days - as a part of me that is wonderful and beautiful. Because, well, it is!
And because it wouldn't be a blog post from me without a link, here's what Anderson Cooper has to say about gray hair.
2 comments:
If you're going to be compared to a celebrity, Clooney is a good way to go. :)
I will say you're extremely lucky to have a good dark brown to go with your gray so that you can be salt and pepper like Anderson Cooper says. I absolutely dread going gray because the contrast will not be quite so lovely. Sigh. Oh, well.
This post reminds me a Death Cab song I will send you. You are not as sad as Mr. Death Cab though!
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