A Tale of Tresses

         She had always had frizzy hair. She didn’t mind the waves and curls though they were unruly. It was the flyaway hair that always freaked her out. No matter how often she combed or brushed her hair, she could never tame the wispy locks that seem to form a disjointed halo around her head. No, it did not make her look spiritual. She only appeared unkempt. All the shampoos and conditioners and hair serums ever invented by mankind had failed her. Miserably.

         But off late, she was burdened with yet another problem. She was shedding hair like a dog. Each time she ran a comb or her fingers through her long mane, she lost about ten strands of hair. Another dozen or so, whenever she stood under the shower.

         Her grandmother recommended that she massage her scalp with a blend of warm olive oil and almond oil at least twice a week. After six months of this biweekly ritual, she abandoned it.

         Her hairdresser suggested that she come in for her monthly haircuts at the beginning of the waxing phase of the moon. Immediately after new moon is the best time, the coiffeur suggested. And no haircuts on Tuesdays, Fridays or Saturdays. Trimming hair in the evenings is a strict no-no, he added. She didn’t attempt to get started on this strict regimen.

         She suspected that her addiction to nicotine might have something to do with her thinning hair. Nothing I can do about that, she declared to herself.

         Her friends blamed it on the water that ran through Singapore’s pipelines. The water here is terrible, they claimed. They couldn’t offer a solution.

         She rang her mother and received some well-meant advice. Don’t fret, honey. Have you considered de-stressing? Maybe that’s what you need.

         And so she went about her life, the problem of her thinning mane soon overshadowed by more pressing issues at work and at home. The issue cropped up again one late summer evening when she ran into a long forgotten acquaintance at the beach. She knew Elsa from college; they had attended a Classics course together for a semester, more than a decade ago. Elsa was strolling on the beach, sporting a clean-shaven head.

         I see you’ve found the perfect remedy to the issue of hair loss, she bantered with Elsa.

         Elsa ran her fingers over her bald scalp. Oh this, she remarked.

         So did you go to India? she continued. On a spiritual journey of sorts?

         Elsa smiled wanly. No. It’s the cancer, she explained.