Friday, October 10, 2008

Locs Journey: Part Two


…Ten years of numerous styles later, including braid extensions, relaxing, blow drying and texturising, and I re-started growing my hair into locs in September 2006, which like last time was more than choosing a hairstyle.

This time round, I now know how to treat and condition my locs with natural products such as oils and oil sheens. My personal loctician has taken great care of my locs.

I have had my locs for two years now and they are here to stay. They hold a spiritual meaning for me in that they are an expression of my connection to and appreciation for my African heritage. I feel this is a natural response to the African Caribbean vibrations of my African ancestry.

I see this decision as a way of life; a cultural expression of pride in my ethnic identity. Wearing locs is also a way of freeing myself both figuratively and literally from the dictates of western European fashion. My hair is finally at ease, relaxed and free and I love every minute of it.

I love my locs; they feel nice to touch and I find myself doing just that – feeling each and every unique dred on my head. This is something that I never did when my hair was in other less natural styles.

Author Alice Walker, who has worn her hair in locs since the 1980s, once wrote, ‘Bob Marley is the person who taught me to trust the universe enough to respect my hair; as he shook his lion’s mane, the confidence, the love, and the sheer commitment to Blackness and to Jah was in his every moment.’

By Nicole Moore

No comments: