I don’t consider myself bald, I’m just taller than my hair.

I don’t consider myself bald, I’m just taller than my hair. – Seneca

Some start with no hair, others end with no hair. Why worry? Be yourself.

Some start with no hair, others end with no hair. Why worry? Relax and just be yourself.

What does that mean?
While this may seem a flippant quote, to me, it has deeper meaning. To me this quote is about being at ease with who you are and your physical condition. While many people complain about aspects of themselves, this is one of the things for which there still isn’t a really good solution.

Here, a little levity is used to address a condition that devastates some people, mostly (but not entirely) men. That to me is disconcerting, that anyone would allow something completely outside of their control impact their self worth so strongly.

This quote implies to me that we should take life with a grain of salt, to roll with it, and to not get hung up on the little stuff. We are, I would like to think, more than the sum of our follicles. This quote treats the situation with the seriousness I believe it deserves.

Why is accepting who you are important?  
There is a similar quote about clothes making a man, with which I disagree. I have seen complete bums dressed in thousand dollar suits, and very successful people who dress in t-shirts and jeans. Whether you measure success in business, in intellectual prowess, or in virtue, you will find all kinds wearing all sorts of clothes.

If clothes don’t make the man, how could hair possibly be any different? Clothes we have some choice regarding, but our hair, that’s (according to my understanding of the latest research) all in the genes. At birth, you’re either going to outgrow your hair at some point, or you won’t.

By accepting what you are going to end up looking like, with hair or without, we can move on to worrying about the important things (1) (2). And it sets an example for those around you. If you can accept it, others around you may be put at ease about the topic.

Where can I apply this in my life?
While I may not go bald (there are some bald males and some non-bald males in my family lineage), I most definitely have a receding forehead. I call it a five head, because it’s gotten bigger since when it was just a four-head. Levity, I can use it.

What things are in your life over which you have no control? I wouldn’t consider addiction or being overweight something outside of your control, as there are plenty of programs that have proven track records for helping people with those challenges.

There are more and more veterans returning from war with amputations. While that is something over which they have no control, they can come to grips with the situation. There are also prosthetics (artificial limbs) which can help them get back into a relatively normal lifestyle.

If they chose to, they can be morose, and lament their fate. Or they can face the fact that life is now different, and accept who they are. Once they have accepted their new reality, they can move forward to try to reclaim what they can of what had been their life. It won’t be easy, but life rarely is for anyone.

Take some time and think about what in your life really is different and beyond your control. About all I came up with (besides my five-head) is a mild stutter when nervous and verbal dyslexia. Even then, there are programs which can help mitigate the impact of these particular quirks.

What about you really bugs you? What have you tried to do to rid yourself of the issue? How convinced are you that there is no help and no way to get any better than you presently are? When you have exhausted all options and come up empty, it may be time to consider how you will adapt to this issue.

Again, this is a last-gasp method for something that is truly untreatable and beyond remediation. Trying something for a week and declaring it a failure because you didn’t do the work necessary isn’t good enough. When you have tried your best, with help from qualified coaches and helpers, and they agree that it’s beyond your ability to change, then you’re at this point.

Somehow you’ve got to remind yourself that you are more than this issue, whatever that issue might be. If it’s lack of hair, try to determine why your identity is tied to your hair, or lack thereof. Is there someone you pattern yourself after who has good looking hair? Is that where it comes from?

If it’s someone in Hollywood, a great many of them have little hair themselves, often wearing a hairpiece or having graft surgery to replace the lost hair. How else are you tied to this issue? What examples can you find of people you respect or want to be like who also have this issue?

This is an open-field question, with no definitive answer. However, I hope I have given you a few ideas, and possibly given you reason to revisit some of the possible methods of remediation for your issue. Who knows, you might be able to make some progress. At least one can hope so, while working the program for all it is worth.

From: Twitter, @philo_quotes
confirmed at : http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/quotes/l/luciusanna120547.html
Photo by colros

About philosiblog

I am a thinker, who is spending some time examining those short twitter quotes in greater detail on my blog.
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One Response to I don’t consider myself bald, I’m just taller than my hair.

  1. Pingback: Truth is like the sun. You can shut it out for a time, but it ain’t goin’ away. | philosiblog

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