I should, of course, have known that such peace would not last Chez Nous!
Here I am, vexed to extinction only hours after I wrote of my haven of tranquility which surrounded me! I tempted the Gods and they have risen to my challenge and destroyed all I held dear.
I can blame no other; I have truly brought this thing upon myself preoccupied with my own pleasures as I have been. I am an undeniably selfish and an unforgivably distracted mother and henceforth, am destined each day to have the evidence paraded before me as proof of my perfidiousness!
Yesterday whilst I sat in my studio admiring my own art Eldest was in her room with the door firmly closed , not as I thought safely engaged in doing whatever girls her age do in solitude but performing such an unprecedented act of folly that I shudder even now at my discovery of it!
She has carried out an act of deliberate self mutilation and it is I who am to blame! Oh how I weep for myself that I did not think to tap at her door and beg her to sit with me in the studio whist I painted. Why , oh self regarding personage that I am, did I not call her to pose for me by the clear light of the window so that I might capture the innocence of her smile, the light playing on her dappled cheeks, her unbound curls rippling splendid about her pale shoulders! Ah but now it is too late and I am bereft as only a mother can be!
Eldest has done the unspeakable, the unforgivable, She has , with the aid of the kitchen scissors she has cut off her lustrous hair! Chief Patissier is understandably furious with his dear daughter for inflicting this upon herself. Even Madame Grognonne is horrified! The boys however find it a lively joke for, when all is said and done she looks like a boy!
Comfort me not with the thought that I must be thankful that she did not follow Jacques lead and dye her hair red, or heaven forbid green, that would be but a trifling thing compared to the horrors she has already accomplished.
I am so overcome I have taken to my room with nothing but the decanter of Cognac and a chilled bottle of Champagne for consolation, and here I intend to stay until her hair has grown.
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The painting above is titled Jeune fille peignant ses cheveux by the artist Pierre-Auguste Renior, who as a Frenchman fully appreciated the importance a girls hair plays in her overall beauty. I am considering purchasing a copy of the painting to in Eldest’s dressing room to act as a constant reminder of all that she has discarded. I, of course, need no reminder as I have the dubious pleasure of seeing the result each day at mealtimes.
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11 comments:
Oh heck!
I can remember youngest son cutting a great chunk out of his fringe...because it made him look like a girl!
I can remember doing exactly the same with my own hair and my mother not speaking to me for weeks ...don't know if she had the cognac and the champagne with her though....more like the vinegar and domestos ..the snide remarks I got!
O no, how awful, what a shame. Why did she do it? The painting is beautiful, and reminds me of my daughter.
All things pass Un peu, it will grow again. Hair has that habit.....tho maybe she will be at it again with the shears!
Yes, hair does indeed grow - especially when you're not looking and it springs up in the most unwelcome places, but enough of my sister's woes! But when Eldest get's to the piercing stage do make sure that you lock up your sewing kit.
Actually that's just brought back very unpleasant memories of having a 'bubble perm'!!! I nearly exhausted my tear ducts afterwards!
I think you ought to open a hair salon. I remember Amy cutting her hair, now she wants it long again.
Yeah, right!
Madame G is a resourceful old dear. While you have a well earned lie down, couldn't you get her to try strong glue and an old bathing cap. In no time I'm sure you could get Eldest's lovely locks back into place. Or lock the lass in a tower until her hair grows again, a sort of Rapunzle in reverse.
Oh dear. Brought back memories of me chopping my hair off and dying it black. It'll grow, I guess. Gorgeous picture, as ever.
Oh come on Un Peu! Daughters do far, far worse things than that! Even mild and sensible Younger Daughter came back from France with a stud through her nose aged 16 and after tramping around 21 jewellers in Nantes (who said 'non - tu es trop jeune.') The 22nd - obviously more avaricious than the previous 21 - did it for her. This was in 1989 before Europe had heard of nose studs. Then she came back from Africa without any hair at all! The phase never lasts long. It is all part of 'le growing-up.' Forget the hair, the real question is will she pass her exams!
Besides, she may have adopted Jean D'Arc as a mentor, have visions of freeing Brittany from the Republican yoke and be hearing voices. I don't suppose Joan would have paid any attention at all to her Mother, no matter how many pictures she hung over her table.
Quel domage!!! Pauvre Un Peu!! Are you sure that champagne and cognac alone are enough to see you through - best to send Mme G out for some very good chocolate to see you through.
I remember when a five year old Lillypad called me to the bathroom to show me her 'bangs'..she had pulled her hair back from her forhead and then cut as close to the scalp as she could. The resulting fringe was only millimeters long. I cried!
Catching up.
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