I chopped off my 3+ years old crocheted dreadlocks on the early December of 2007 due to a severe lice attack from helmet sharing, which I didn't know how to handle it back then (too panic for googling some answer I guess. lol). went bald and keep the short hair for a year and did lots of thoughts. thoughts about whether I should stop or keep on my journey from zero. It took me lots of courage to start all over. So, on the third day of New Year of 2009 I shaved my head bald and growing them back since then.

Around may 2010, when my hair about a shoulder length, I’d decided to stop brushing my hair and  i remember, by the next couple of months, a few of lumps of hairs start to formed on the back of the head and by October I had a matted hair qualified enough to be called a dreadlock. While there are other two also forming next to it.

Then I went to a phase where i was unsure about what kind of method i should choose. Thinking that i had tried the crochet method before and know the ritual of it, I was curious about the wax to be applied to the rest of my hair. Either that, or I should put a little faith and leave my hair alone just like the book I have, titled Dreads by Francesco Mastalia and Alfonse Pagano; a book which I bought in winter of 2002, where there is a page profiling a Caucasian woman from New Zealand and her quote says “I was ten years old and didn’t like brushing my hair, so I stopped. I love my hair, I just hate brushing it. I didn’t even know what dreadlocks were,”   

Still undecided what kind of method I should choose, those three matted hair on the back of my head keeps maturing and more lumps started to form. Yet I browsed the dreadheadhq site to gain information about dreadlocks and I was clicks away from making the mistake of purchasing the product until google showed some dreadlocks pictures from the same site, dreadlockssite.com. I was curious, the truth is inside and I’m enlighten. Just like that. Created an account and decided to leave my hair alone just like the quote says on the book.

The Lord is great. Why I said that? I remembered one night I was in my pray before I went to bed and I gave thanks and told him how I love my dreadlocks and asked him to keep my dreadlocks healthy and last life-long. I remembered weeks after that I had colony of lice on my head, sucking every drop of my blood, and put me in a phase of great disappointment because I had to shave my head. I felt really down and a bit depress for a couple of months knowing the fact I didn't had my dreadlocks anymore.  Yet, by the time I have courage to start all over, He lead me to the right place and the right people to educate my self about dreadlocks. And I am lucky enough to have a job where i don't have to worry about the look of my hair and a supportive boss. 

Thus, there’s always a price to pay and the phases I went through wasn’t so smooth. My hair is a total mess and people around me give that kind of look and/or lectured about what dreadlocks are and on how they should be done, which now I believe those person have never try neglected method before. And the verse from the book of Psalm always strengthen me, “Those who sow in tears will reap with songs of joy.”

If you ask me now on how my dreadlocks would look like next year, my answer would be, "I dunno." The options are 'to-congo' and 'not to-congo."