After the Perm

My hair is curled but not styled.

Since my perm, last week, I’ve been mostly wearing it in a pony tail, even though, when I wear it loose, my sweetheart calls me “Curly Sue”–with that look that makes me feel pretty.

I’ve set something in motion–in this case, my hair–and I’m a little disturbed about it. The hair fantasy that prompted a big outlay of cash and hours of smelly chemicals on my head does not match the reality of this frightening hair-shrub that won’t comb out. It’s like inviting a friend over and having a stranger show up and refuse to leave.

It’s like signing contracts to write books and then having to face, with totally irrational shock, the blank page; or launching a blog and being such a neurotic perfectionist that nothing gets posted for a whole month, even though I have a backlog of material waiting to go. Mmmhmm.

Note to self: Lady, those curls are not the only thing about your head that needs help.

My beautiful friend, Pat Gohn, with the greatest kindness, sent me a text the other night, invoking this scripture:

Then the peace of God that surpasses all understanding will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. (Phillipians 4:7)

I was at Mass, this morning, and I realized that I am often tripped up by a spirit of fear, so I asked Jesus to cast it out. When I got home, I made a to-do list and I’m rolling through it, crossing things off, making progress–in spite of that funny, nervous feeling in my stomach.

I also made an appointment to have my hair styled, so I’ll have a clue what to do with it, going forward. It’s one thing to have curls, another to make them your own.

I hope your day is blessed with the grace to live your life in a spirit of freedom, and may the peace that surpasses all understanding be yours always in the Holy Name of Jesus Christ. +