Getting My Hair Braided

This is a College essay… my notes are listed below. (perfersbly I’d like you to integrate my first paragraph into the essay I’m nearly brought to tears as my mom sticks a rat tailed comb through my thick jungle-like nappy hair. My head begins to pulsate followed by a series of heavy breathing. It was the first time getting my hair braided. I figured it wouldn’t do much for me. But once I looked in the mirror I felt like a completely different person.      For a long time, I’ve hated my hair  For a long time, I’ve hated my hair I felt like it was untamed  it never seemed to cooperate with me  I would end up spending so much time on it just for little results I’d even try to hide it by wearing hats and visors, but I think it just made my insecurity worse Getting my hair braided  I’m nearly brought to tears as my mom sticks a rat tailed comb through my thick jungle-like nappy hair.  hurts really bad  Once the process was over it felt like my brain was going to burst out of my head, but once I looked in the mirror I felt like a completely different person.  At school the hair code is pretty strict  As the Gilman handbook states, “Hair cannot extend below the collar, over the ears, or below the eyes and must be neat, clean, a natural color, and well groomed. No extreme haircuts or hairstyles are permitted.” However, as school becomes virtual, and I don’t have to wear a button down and tie everyday, I can indulge myself in a culture that is seen as “dirty” or “unsightly.”   Braids brought me closer to my Mom My dad works in New York so I don’t see him as much, so it’s just me and my mom Before the pandemic, I wasn’t able to see my mom as much. I had to balance track, school, and my artwork; our schedules didn’t work.  I feel closer to my mom Getting my hair braided felt like a distraction from everything we’d watch a movie together in the meantime In the past six months, the relationship I’ve built between me and my mother has developed stronger than it ever could. Having a woman’s influence and opinion, has reconstructed my thinking in almost every aspect.  How do they make me feel? Braids make me feel free to express myself I had struggled to find a topic that truly meant something to me, I guess this is what everyone goes through.. like I wasn’t interesting enough Braids make me feel unique I feel like They accentuate my blackness  Hair beads and jewelry connect me to my history  power and cultural value behind   My mom is immunocompromised  Live alone with mom   My mom has breast Cancer Gave all my hats to her (shows signs of new found confidence)