Sunday, June 19, 2011

Donation to Locks of Love

In preparation for losing my hair due to chemotherapy, I decided to donate a lot of it to Locks of Love. I did not want it to be wasted, since it could be used for something worthwhile. This picture is before cutting the Locks of Love braid off.

My friend, Suzanne, came over to help cut it off and even up the remaining hair.

I left the front and sides longer than the back so I could comb the front in my usual way for a little while longer.

I took my 33 inches of hair donation to the Post Office to mail, the day after starting chemotherapy.

Janet's Inevitable Hair Removal

On Friday and Saturday June 17-18, it became quite obvious that Janet's hair was falling out, right at the predicted time after her first round of chemo.
So, we picked a rare time when everybody was at home to take it all off for her. Jason indignantly declined the offer to actually wield the scissors or clippers, but he faithfully captured a video of the entire ordeal; thanks, Jason.
Jeff began, then took turns with Beth, Emily, and finally Rowen.


Only once did Janet yield to her emotions, which we all were feeling...



It was a sad time, but we tried to keep each other cheerful. Janet has diligently taught our children, from their early childhood, to 'do the next thing'. There is always a 'next thing to do', so as a family we often remind ourselves and each other, to just 'do the next thing'. As we began the removal of Janet's hair, she resolutely reminded us again, that it was time to do the next thing, which was to remove her hair, as completely as possible with hair clippers. We decided not to actually shave her imperfect scalp, at least at this time.

Janet now is experimenting with wig, scarf, cap, and hat options. As I write this, she is still undecided as to her favorite, but it is less than 24-hours since her scalp has been exposed to the elements.
We have been having trouble with a plague of rabbits eating the tender green bean plants in our garden. Upon "Google-ing" the problem this week, I discovered that some people have successfully repelled rabbits by placing human hair around their garden. So, the last of Janet's hair to be removed was strewn among our precious beans plants.