I remember her when she was 15, having moved to a completely new place, with her short hair. The shaved sides and thinned-out top of her head had an innocence in it that was hard to ignore. The hair reflected so much of her personality, you see: her short temper, thin patience, “boy-ish” mannerisms, and her all-over-the-place personality. Between all the brown, short pieces that stuck out of her hair, there was a longer strip that she had painted blue, like the ocean. The ocean that she called freedom, that was all of her open heart.

Three years passed. Her hair grew out. With the hair grew her height; her body, that others constantly stared at, that made her uncomfortable; her voice, that got louder by the day; her presence, that became stronger like the roots; and her mindset, that welcomed an open-minded view of the world.

Today, as she walks the path to a bright future, her hair follows, so full, so brown, and so strong. Her hair has gotten so long that it is hard to put it in a hair tie. As she walks, strong and tall and proud, her personality leaves the strongest roots, ones that are hard to tie in the limits and expectations of the society around her.