Dedicated to all women who have lost their hair fighting cancer and other illness. It’s a hard thing to endure, as we tend to look at ourselves in the mirror with a certain defining viewpoint…
LOOKING FOR SCISSORS
Panic set in when radiation exacted its toll
Nauseous moments, endless drives to the hospital
All this she could endure; her faith was strong
But she called me in the dead of night
pleading, “Come downstairs, I can’t find my scissors!”
Was she going to hurt herself? End it after all?
Padding down back steps in PJs and slippers
I found her weeping on a kitchen chair
surrounded by long strands of hair, a nest of fallen beauty
“Quick! Braid what’s left and cut it off!”
Tea-rstained plea of a women for whom
her waist-length tresses were a source of pride
Gently weaving, endeavoring to leave undisturbed
the bounty still holding fast to roots,
carefully rubber banding both ends.
“Are you sure you want me to cut it?”
She grabbed my scissors, handed them off
like a scalpel: handle first
“They’ve poisoned and burned me.
If all I have left is this, it’s enough.”
Snip.
Twenty years of lovingly tended hair
lay in her hands in a braid. She cried, mourning,
“And he never even noticed, I kept it long for him…”
Sharp Little Pencil 
sarachnid
so sensitively touched and deeply felt and well written – brings me to mind of a very dear friend – good poetry
Sharp Little Pencil
Thank you, Ms. Sara. Such a hard subject, but I wanted the poem to feel as delicately handled as her actual hair. Your remark reflects that I achieved that goal, so thanks.
Amy
Olivia
Very powerful..!!
May I say thanks for sharing this piece here..?
I have witnessed couple of people undergoing this trauma day by day.. all women- from a very close angle. I did get an opportunity to nurse during her medication days.. The last I knew of here is she was doing well. God Bless!!
Your heart is made up of Gold.. 🙂
Loads of Love My Dear!!
Sharp Little Pencil
Olivia, would that my heart were made of gold, I’d sell it and buy food and water for children in poverty. Really.
Your blog is incredible. You share from the soul and I am filled with admiration. As for the Scissors post, it was hard to write, but she was my landlady and I was the only woman tenant who could do this for her. It felt like a gift, though a sad one. She slept with the braid under her pillow every night until she died.
Blessings and love, Amy
whimsygizmo
Oh, Amy. So touching. I have a friend going through this right now. I can only imagine. Beautifully written, my friend.
Sharp Little Pencil
Thank you so much, De.
She was actually my landlady, and it was a heartbreaker, for sure. She didn’t believe in doctors and thought Jesus would heal her. Eventually, she went to the doctor too late, and finally, peacefully, Jesus did heal her, forever. I will always remember her out in the garden tending her roses.
Hope your friend is responding to treatment, De. That’s the best we can do, watch, wait, pray. Amy
pamela
Amy,
My goodness this is heartbreaking. I lost both of my grandmothers to cancer. It is always something I fear.
Pamela
Sharp Little Pencil
Sorry for opening an old wound. And yes, if it’s in your family, it always looms large, I understand. Be well, my friend. Amy
Sherry Blue Sky
Very poignant and real and beautiful. So moving. This speaks to a universal audience. Something everyone can definitely relate to, and you wrote it so well.
Sharp Little Pencil
So many folks in Western New York have cancer – a lot from the Manhattan Project experiments conducted in Buffalo, when radioactive crap was flushed down storm drains and Buffalo Steel employees were not told the materials they handled were indeed poisonous. We are too familiar with cancer… and AIDS… and…
Thanks for the nod. I love your poetry blog, too! Amy
Barbara Ehrentreu
Amy,
A tough subject beautifully expressed. I think i like these lines best:
Twenty years of lovingly tended hair
lay in her hands in a braid. She cried, mourning,
“And he never even noticed, I kept it long for him…”
I imagine the he is her husband. So sad.
Sharp Little Pencil
Barbara, thank you for your kind words. Here’s the sad part: She never married and always mourned her unrequited college love, always sure he would someday come to her. Yeah, guess that makes it ever sadder… Amy
uponthewingsofnight
As you know, I have lost two siblings to cancer in recent years. The last line of the poem was the saddest of all. I was fortunate that I didn’t see my brother Duane and my sister Debby go through that. I think they were both shielding me from the pain because of their love for me. I agree with Barbara…a tough subject beautifully expressed. Brett
Sharp Little Pencil
Thanks, Brett. I know what your went through with Duane, but Debby also? Yes, shielding you from their pain, I can see that… must have been hard for you to read, hon. Peace, Amy
uponthewingsofnight
It was rather difficult to read but there is one thing, among many others, that makes me smile. I have been donating my hair to Locks of Love for the past few years. I get my hair cut once every other year or so. I haven’t had hair shorter than shoulder length since the latter days of the Reagan administration.
Sharp Little Pencil
Now that is cool. You are the first man I know who donates. I did see a family with three young girls, all of whom repeatedly grow their hair – one had just gotten a “summer bob” style after donating. Congratulations on a truly worth endeavor, Brett. Amy
Kalyn
I don’t even know what to say, this made things so much easeir!