My favorite sound comes from my hair.
When I hear the open ocean coming from my beach waves it takes me to another level. I become an exoctic dancer, of the lesser provocative sort. No nightclub, no gentlemen’s lounge, moreso private show for my man that’s only my man.
There’s a sensation with the smooth swish. You can’t even hear it, unless you focus.
Take four fingers and place them palm-in on the side of your face. Flattened fingers are close enough to the face to feel one another’s presence without pressing. The fine grooves of the fingertips meet the fine hairs of the face, ever so gently, not touching the skin. The top of the nails are towards the brow bone and the base of the palm almost begins to cuff the chin. For the most part, they’re not touching, only at parts when the hand can’t help but bend. It’s nearly impossible to maintain that precise distance, but keep it in mind while gliding the fingers from over the cheek to behind the ear. What do you hear?
It’s that very subtle sound the hair makes.
If you’re hair is hanging, and long enough, tilt your head forward, then tilt it back, slowly, gently. Do you hear the sound the hair makes as it falls past the ear? Hair strands are almost like chords on a violin, carrying sound when rubbed against.
I enjoy that sound. And maybe it’s not only the sound, rather the combined sensation. When my shoulders and back aren’t covered with clothing and my hair is hanging down, each swish comes with a soft sensation, the most gentle rub brushing my body.
This feels good, which makes me want to cause more of it. I move my head in ways for my hair to touch farther down my back; I move my body in ways to meet it, along my arms, up my legs, between them.
This feels even better. I’m moving my body, my blood is flowing faster through my veins, my chest is beating, I control my breath, then release it. I let it control me. My hair and me, flowing freely.
My first creative writing course at UCLA Extension, a two-Saturday workshop, left me with a plethora of tools to use, one of which being a document listing thirty days of writing prompts. This short-form piece on hair was a result day 1’s writing prompt, “My favorite (or least favorite) sound…”.
This little corner of the Internet, aroundwithTK, is serving as a space for self-exploration with a girl that’s curious about herself and the world. Other writers have readers; if you’re here, I consider you a rider. Thanks for joining what’s sometimes a bumpy one and I hope that you’ll stick AROUND.