My [BIG] Chop ~ NaturallyMee♥

Before I share my Big Chop story, I must first admit that I was one of those 'I'll NEVER go natural' girls... *giggles* silly Mee!

I'm not going to go into the full story of my hair just yet (mostly because I'm strapped for time right now), but it's important to note that this was not my first Big Chop. Although this is my first experience being natural, due to damage I had to cut my hair from very long to very short about 2 years ago and I've been rocking a short cut since. Back then, I lost a lot of hair, but I gained a lot of courage (& confidence).

Before 'Big Chop' #1

After 'Big Chop' #1

I've enjoyed my short hair for these last few years. My mother was blessed with long, beautiful hair that I only got to see in pictures because she cut her hair before I was born and kept it short for the remainder of her life. I could never understand why she wouldn't let her hair grow long again! Until I went down that very road myself...

Fast forward 2 years and my decision to go natural was just as much a surprise to me as it was to everyone else. Although I've always been a fan of natural hair and LOVE to see my black sistas loving their natural selves, I never saw myself embarking upon that journey. So I'd been rocking with my short, permed, over-processed hair. I've worn all sorts of styles with my short hair, but I became bored with it and quite frankly, wasn't taking care of my hair AT ALL. I decided it was time for change.

But what would I do next? Go shorter? Maybe try weaves for a while? Asymmetrical bob anyone?

Still undecided, one day I logged on to Facebook and saw that one of my co-workers had just done the Big Chop and gone natural and she looked simply AMAZING. She'd posted a video on YouTube showing the process she followed to style her natural hair and define her curls and from there I immersed myself in YouTube videos, blogs, forums, and anything else I could find focusing on natural hair. I became entranced by the idea of staring fresh with my hair and redefining myself. Within about 2 or 3 weeks of doing constant research, as well as subscribing to all the natural hair guru's I could find on YouTube, I finally decided to stop playing games and just go for it! I figured my hair was already short, if being natural didn't work out I could always slap a perm in and go back to what I've done in the past.

But then I really started thinking... Isn't going natural really about accepting and loving your hair and all it's kinky, coily, curly, or nappy-ness? Isn't it about embracing who you are, naturally? I hadn't had a perm in about 3 months so on August 12, 2011 I made the concious decision to accept, embrace, and love my hair... no matter what it's natural texture. SO I JUST CUT IT ALL OFF! [=