Confusion, Curiosity and Delight

Moving temporarily into a world of red maple leafs, urban gardens, long summer days, cardinals and blue jays, oversized cats with insatiable appetites, skunks and raccoons, weather chatting neighbors, music festivals and inner city park yoga. A world where people go about their business without noticing the faces of one another, without the familiar nods of island connectedness; until a smile meets their passing gaze and I become not just a body in a city full of other bodies but a person with strange hair wrapped in colorful cloth.

In Grenada I am Rasta, Ras, Sistren, Dread, Empress, however here I am watched with confusion, curiosity, and delight. Within the first day of planting ourselves onto Canadian soil a new friend commented excitedly, “birds could build nests in your hair!” I laughed and thought of diamond headed satin green Grenada hummingbirds landing and nesting. Two days ago an elder woman crossed the road as I was getting into the van and with surety and regret said, “if I had my life to live over I would have hair just like yours”. Last night while walking to the Blues Festival, to dance the night away to Gypsy Kings and Steele Pulse,a lady bravely asked if she could feel my hair. She waited patiently for me to offer up my head. Some comments are not so positive such as the time I walked into my doctors office and was greeted with, “I pray my daughter never comes home with hair like that” and last summer when a jacket and tie man laughed boldly in my direction “does it come with operating instructions” glaring at my head and chuckling with other white collar suits. However, these comments are few and in between the light, breezy curiosity of the many Ottawa dwellers who glance over and see mother and daughter wearing their cross cultural hair proudly and freely.