Memories of Haircuts

For years hair appointments had been a treat. It was more than just a haircut, but a time of relaxation and pampering. This was always the case, from the time that I had big hair when I met Mick until I had extremely short hair. Since moving here, the experience changed. After trying several salons, Mick insisted that I try his shop. He has been going to "Eloisa Estetica" on President Cordova y Borrero since moving here. Last month I went and he insisted that it was the best cut I've had in years. He loves really short hair. The salon is larger than most with a large staff. Elena cuts his hair and also does mine. This is Elena. Elena cuts your hair, washes and styles it for $4-5. It has the feel of a barber shop and while sitting in the chair, it brought back memories of my childhood. As a child, I always had short hair; my mother always insisted that I have short hair because "every time your hair gets long, you get sick." I've never understood that statement, but my mother was very country and had her beliefs. Every Saturday my dad would get a haircut. Occasionally, Mother would insist that he take me with him to get my bangs cut. I was too short for the barber chair, so the barber, Bill Clark, would put a stool in the chair for me to sit on. He would pop the apron to put over me. After trimming my bangs, he would use the brush covered in talcum powder to swish the hairs off my face, tickling my nose.


Mother had her hair done once a week and following the trend of the time, she always wore a perm. Of course, I wanted one, I was 7. As now, I loved the smell of the beauty shop; it was always a pleasant, relaxing smell. This was before my first perm. The smell of the perm was so foul, it made me nauseous and I barfed. This was done at Pearl's Beauty Shop, the first in Pageland, resulting in the name of the street on which I grew up. Fortunately, I outgrew that, afterall, I did have big hair.

All of these thoughts were flooding my mind as Elena cut my hair. I was brought back to the present by a sight that Mick had told me about. Every morning, the owner of "Eloisa" places on his counter rows of nickels. Elderly poor people come into the salon, "buenas dias," go to the counter and take a nickel, smiling as they leave. They come, one after another; they may come in pairs, but enter only one at a time. The owner believes that if he gives, he will receive in return. Imagine, receiving such happiness from only a nickel.

Haircuts are different now. A trip to the salon is not for the experience, but for the haircut. Elena does a good job. She cuts my hair short, which is easy to manage, and gets rid of my "conehead", which has been a problem for years. I will continue to be a client of Elena and enjoy watching the elderly come in for their nickels.

Until next time,
Mick and Kathy