Many many years ago, I met a handsome fella named George. He had a long ponytail of hair, always wore a hat, his standard outfit was a concert t shirt, ripped jeans, and a flannel shirt, AND he had the cutest baby face. He couldn't grow a beard if he tried, let alone a mustache or any other type of facial hair. As luck would have it, I fell head over heels in love with this guy and fifteen years later here we are, happy as pigs in mud on a hot day.
Over the years he has changed his hair style; keeping the same short cropped hair cut for the last ten years or so. He's experimented with different facial hair styles as well; going so far as to grow a full on "play off beard" a few years back when his beloved Blackhawks won the Stanley Cup (boys and their silly sports rituals, am I right?! haha)
All along the way, my hair has changed too (though not my facial hair thank you very much) The length and style have all changed, the color has changed from brown to red to black to a ridiculous looking eggplant purple back to brown again...except for some pesky wiry grey hairs that seem to multiply every time I look in the mirror. Lest you think I am kidding, I once had a woman ask if I highlighted my hair silver on purpose. I am 33 years old and nearly half grey. I go through fits and starts where I decide that I am going to color the hell out of my hair so no one sees the grey...and then I decide to say screw that, grey is beautiful and I love it and screw you if you don't like it. I just got off a two year screw it phase where I let all the grey come through and have the au natural look and then in a fit of despair I colored it again and now after being in the pool a few times a week all of those greys are showing again...oh well ;)
All through the years I have watched George's hair carefully to find the first sign of grey hair; surely a man of his age would have SOME grey by now, right? RIGHT?! It only seems fair that since *I* have the stretch marks and saggy breasts from pregnancy and birth and the grey hair that inevitably comes along with raising children that he should have his fair share of the greys too, right?
Alas, there is no grey in his hair, nor is his hair thinning at all, in fact, his hair is healthier than it's been in years. He has a gorgeous head of hair and there's no grey in sight.
His goatee however, is a completely different story. His goatee is wiry and fantastic; Bits loves to play with his goatee when she sits on his lap; he likes to rub his sopping wet goatee on my face after he gets out of a shower mostly, I think, to hear me giggle because I have it on good authority he enjoys not only making me laugh but HEARING me laugh. The hair on his chin grows in a few different colors, mostly shades of auburn and brown but recently a curious color has popped up. Yes, that's right, GREY! There are a few grey's right in the middle of his goatee, though glancing at him you wouldn't notice them right away, as it's a rather thick patch of hair and most people don't get that close to his face.
I thought all along that I would gloat when the day came and he was finally showing signs of his age; I thought I'd dance around and say "ha ha ha ha you have grey hair!" buuuuut that hasn't happened and I don't SEE it happening anytime soon. I hate to say it but I find it kind of attractive. I like that fact that the grey came on gradually for him. After all these years together the grey seems to say "ah yes, here I am, a mature man, sure of who I am and what I've done. I've been through a lot and better days are ahead but here is the mark of those struggles" It's a visible reminder, to me anyway, that we've both grown so much since those early days of being together, since the days of eating ramen noodles and worrying about Gabriel and having a small apartment with too many books and not enough money and whew. It's been a lot but here we are on the other side with only small battle scars to show...grey hair on his chin...and four million on MY head...okay maybe I may gloat a little about it to him, just for fun...
