My Pandemic
Thanks to COVID-19,
s of late June, I had not been to a hair
stylist since April 2019.

* Insert horror scream here *
I know. I know. That is bad. Don’t @ me.

I have some friends that religiously go every
six weeks. I say, good for them. That’s awesome.

For me, it is just harder. I tend to always put
everyone else above myself. Kids. Husband. Dog.

Cat. Friends. Neighbor. Extended family. You get
the idea.

This winter alone, my son was involved in four
sport activities while my daughter was taking three
dance classes. But I made a promise to myself.

Before the early April start of my son’s spring
baseball season, I would go get my hair cut because
I needed multiple inches taken off.

And then COVID-19 shut down the country.

In the months that followed, we quarantined
like everyone else. Only going out to get groceries
44 WashingtonFAMILY AUGUST 2020
every two weeks. Washing our hands after
getting the mail. Trying to teach our kids through
distance learning.

Throughout this time, my hair continued to grow
(although I probably lost a fair amount to pulling
it out during distance learning—insert another
scream here). I figured when salons started opening
up, I’d get about 6 inches cut off. However, I had no
plans to run there the moment they opened back up
in May. They were going to be super busy.

In mid-May, I saw a picture of actress Jamie
Lynn Sigler in a magazine holding up a long braid
of her own hair that she had decided to donate to
a nonprofit. I’ve been a fan of Sigler since her days
on “The Sopranos.” I thought it was really amazing
that she donated her hair, and I couldn’t stop
thinking about the picture. Then it hit me. If I was
already planning on a sizable haircut, why not just
add a few more inches to the total and donate my
hair like Sigler?
I began researching the best places to donate
hair. I am a cancer survivor, so I wanted to give to
an organization that supports young children facing
the disease. I very vividly remember the prospect