Touch of grey

Compared to many of my friends and peers, I feel pretty lucky. Sure, it’s completely superficial, but while many of my buddies are slowly (or even rapidly) losing their hair, I can claim a full (oftentimes long and flowing) mane. I would even say that my hair may be my best feature (sadly?)!
I recently cut my hair short after letting it grow for a long, long while. When K-Man first saw me, he did a complete double take. It was kind of cute, as if he were totally confused. “Where’s your hair, Daddy?” I tried to explain that I had gotten it cut, but since he’s never actually had a haircut, it was obviously difficult for him to comprehend. “Haircut?” But, he quickly lost interest. “Fire truck.” He was back.

In addition to keeping my hair, I’ve also managed to maintain its color. I don’t have any grey. The irony of this, however, is that I wouldn’t actually mind a bit of grey. There’s something…I don’t know…”fatherly” about having some lightly painted temples or a few salt and pepper highlights. There’s a certain dignity that comes with a touch of grey. Wisdom even.

Yesterday, though, as I was preparing for my trip, I noticed a bit of grey in my beard. Well, maybe not beard, but a couple of days of growth. But there was that touch of grey. As excited as I was, I also knew that it would take me the rest of my life to actually grow out a beard. So, there’s no chance of me ever possibly taking advantage of this hint of grey in the beard. So, I shaved it right off (especially since I needed to get ready for a meeting).

It’s kind of a funny thing to want grey, I think. I mean, having just turned 40, I haven’t exactly gone through a midlife crisis, but I still hate the idea of getting “old(er).” Yet, here I am wanting the very thing that makes me look older? I guess it’s not so much that I want to look or be older; it’s just that I want to look or be more “fatherly.”

I love being a dad. It may very well be the thing I’m best at. So, I just think that maybe I should look the part, ya know? Plus, I kind of think that K-Man would like the two-tone hair! But, I’ve heard of things like “mom jeans.” The grey is kind of like “dad hair.”

Okay, maybe not.

Maybe I should just love the fact that I have all my hair and that it stays (a fabulous?!?) auburn brown! No sense in looking any older than I am. After all, I don’t actually act my age. I suppose I shouldn’t look it either.