So, I Cut My Hair.
It's day 234 of documenting 2025.
So, for sometime now, I've been yapping that I'm going to reveal something HUGE.
Well, today is the day...on a Friday!
Okay, here goes:
A month ago today, I decided to do something wild.
I had been giving it a lot of thought....and realized that ultimately, it was up to me.
And without giving hesitation a chance, I did it.
What exactly did I do? I cut my hair.
Not just bringing it low....shaving it off completely.
The very next day, I was a bald female in her twenties.
If you know me personally, you're probably thinking, What? 😳
But there's a whole story attached to this action...and I'm gonna tell.
After, I'll share today's highlights and a few poems from my poetry collection.
So, it kinda started when I asked my dad one day, if I could cut my hair.
He was like, there's no problem.
I didn't really consider it then, until when July was coming to an end.
I had already started my journey of "the inner work", and by that I mean retreating from the noise of social media.
I realized that the noise and notions of what people thought about me was drowning out who I was on the inside.
At that point, I felt a kind of emptiness that I couldn't explain...and I just needed a change.
So, starting from the 1st of July, I went offline.
Didn't respond to messages, didn't text anyone, didn't post on my status.
It was in the silence I realized something else.
My identity had to change as well.
My neighbors, friends and students all knew me as someone with hair.
And I think they associated me with conformity as well....doing what everyone else was doing and following the crowd.
At some point, I was that way too.
Heaven knows who I truly am....and that's why I suddenly felt out of tune with what people thought of me.
Then I decided to change something about it. My hair had to go and my old identity had to go with it.
Well, that thought didn't come without some counter-opinions.
There was the main thought of,
"What would people say?"
"Your school party is just a few days away!"
"They will laugh at you!"
"You will totally be embarrassed!"
True, the graduation party at the school where I worked then, was a few days away...
And there I was, indecisive.
But I also came up with a few supporting points of mine
(Twas a real mind debate! 😅)
"I'll be getting into school soon...and there will be no need to visit the hairdresser's"
"I can save time and money for more important things"
"Since I'll be relocating soon, people will know me as someone who cut her hair...and I can build from there".
The supporting motion definitely won 😁
Me worrying about what others would say was baseless.
People would definitely talk no matter what I do...and ultimately, it's my life.
I knew I would still hesitate because of the party.
So immediately I got home on the last official school day, I got the scissors.
One month ago today, I cut my hair.
I started with the scissors, as my hair was very full.
Then I roped my brother into using the hair clippers at home to finish the job.
By nightfall, the deed had been done...no going back.
I burned my hair, and the old version of me.
My dad came home that night and was shocked 😲
He was thinking I would just cut part of the hair into a particular style, like punk.
He laughed because of how different my face looked.
He later said it was good, and advised that I cover my head until the hair comes up.
My sister, who also has full hair, said something along the lines of,
"It's not bad at all....but I don't think I have the courage to cut my hair like you".
Now, she's the only person going to our hairdresser.
Lemme just tell you what happened on the party day...and I'll round up this tall tale 🙃
The party day came. I covered my hair with a scarf that matched the outfit.
I had told a few of my students before then that I cut my hair....so I'm sure they whispered among themselves.
Anyways, my fellow female colleagues were shocked when I told them that I cut off my hair completely.
One of them even said that it pained her.
When they asked why, the story I told them sounded like this:
"My hair was already shrinking...and it was getting hard to comb. I wanted to cut it in style but my brother messed it up...so I told him to shave it all off.
I even saw some undergrowth in the hair as he was cutting it. I want to start it all over again."
That's how they stopped talking.
In the end, it was my decision, not theirs.
It's been a whole month now.
My hair has grown back...but it's still a short stack.
I still cover my head when I go out...either with a sewn beanie that was always lying around the house, or a crochet bucket hat I finally decided to complete.
I also have a purple turban....for when I wear a corporate dress.
I don't plan to uncover my head anytime soon, until I finally travel to my hometown to finalize my admission.
I'll be going a new place, with a new identity and a new chapter of my life just starting.
And as for pictures, I must admit that my face looks very different from when I used to make my hair. I'm still pretty tho 🥰
Wow! That was definitely a long story....but it's out now.
If you see any of my pictures online, just know they're the old ones.
Even the one you will see on my X profile.
But yo heard it here first, okay?
Keep it a secret 🤫
Alright, alright
Let's do Highlights now...
365 Days With Self-discipline
📌 On Forgiving
"To err is human, to forgive, divine."
Quote by Alexander Pope
What is a quote about forgiving doing in a book about self-discipline and success?
The answer is simple: holding a grudge is like instant gratification. It gives you a little reward today at the expense of your future.
Meanwhile, forgiving requires some sacrifice today, but eventually brings bigger benefits.
This means that the act of forgiving can serve as a valuable exercise in improving your self-control, particularly emotional control.
Engaging in negative emotions by staying angry at somebody who hurt you can give you some pleasure by satisfying your need for “fairness” in the world; expressing your dislike or anger is like punishing the one who erred.
However, in the long run, holding a grudge poisons only one person, and that person is you. Choosing to forgive — which doesn’t necessarily mean to forget — is therefore an act of freeing yourself from pain.
Instead of being stuck in a negative emotional loop, you choose the
temporary discomfort of making peace in exchange for the substantial long-term benefits of improved well-being.
PS. I shared the whole note, which wasn't too long.
And I'm sure you get the gist here.
I also want to add this:
"Sometimes, you also have to forgive yourself...because you hurt yourself sometimes".
Keep that in mind 😌
Now, I would like to share a poem from my newest ebook, Lanterns For The Lost.
The ebook is basically a collection of soul-speak poetry...poems that speak to you.
Here's one of them:
When the Soul Forgets Itself
“All things,” they say, “are but impressions made.”
The world a lens, and we, its shifting frame.
But if we hold too tightly to the shade,
We lose the thread, and fragment into shame.
Illusion creeps where clarity once stood.
The soul forgets itself when it withdraws
A bitter wound against the world it leaves.
Disgusted by the law that shapes all things,
It breaks from nature, chokes on what it breathes.
And seeks revenge for pain it misbelieves.
It twists with lust or aches with sharpened pride,
Pretends, performs, puts on a borrowed face.
It acts with no clear aim, no light inside
Just mindless motion in a hollow space,
Estranged from love, and stranger still to grace.
Yet what is life? A moment barely seen.
A fickle dance of shadows, flesh, and flame.
The soul a mist, the body ever lean,
While fame dissolves into a whispered name.
So what remains to hold through all the pain?
Something to think about
Where have I allowed my soul to forget its true home?
The poems all have a reflective line at the end, like this one.
The aim is to make you think on your own experiences and reflect on the lessons you will learn.
You can get more of these poems and reflective lines in the full collection.
That's all for today's post.
Thanks for reading 🎀
The news is finally out!...but remember,
It's a secret, okay?
I'm Duon Ada.
I'm documenting 2025,
And I'll see you tomorrow.
Ciao 💕
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