Querida Negra Suave

Dear little girl,

There is so much I want to show you. There is so much I’m excited for. I will spend my life instilling in you just how beautiful you are the way you were born. I’ve endured decades of unlearning that our curly, coily, frizzy, and kinky hair is undesirable, yet I get to meet you where I am today. A fresh mind. I get to show you how striking, carefree, and quintessential your strands are. You will get to meet me where I am and skip all the doubts I had.

My hair is too coarse and untouchable.

My hair is tangled and matted.

My curls aren’t loose and don’t hang.

My hair is unmanageable.

My hair has to be relaxed for it to be pretty.

Your hair is yours.

Your hair can be watered and flourish.

Your curls are unique.

Your hair can be left alone.

Your hair is versatile.

There is nothing your hair can’t do.

I can’t wait to style it for you, but you can also simply let it breathe. Any look you prefer is the right way. And together we can create a new meaning for soft, but let’s start here—

Soft (/sôft/): How we treat our hair— an extension of our being and those that came before us.

Love,

Your mom

-Ashley SQ for Soft Rows