I have a number of reasons, and most of them revolve around being more peaceful.
updated by @goldeneagle: 07/23/15 05:11:38AM
What made you start your "Journey"?
@goldeneagle
14 years ago
393 posts
I've never thought too much about why, I wanted dreads; I sorta had an emo fringe, than just got over it, evened out my hair...but I think it's cause i've had short hair my whole life, sorta conservative short hair, but now im 17 soo I just figured fuck it dreads look sweet (+ I like Bob marley ^^, but who doesn'?? :P)
@acidreams
14 years ago
39 posts
Michael Hein said:
oh godI've never thought too much about why, I wanted dreads; I sorta had an emo fringe, than just got over it, evened out my hair...but I think it's cause i've had short hair my whole life, sorta conservative short hair, but now im 17 soo I just figured fuck it dreads look sweet (+ I like Bob marley ^^, but who doesn'?? :P)
@izzy-licious
14 years ago
183 posts
I have wanted them for as long as I can remember. I at first was afraid of what others would think and my mother was supportive like she is about nearly everything after I discuss why I am into something. My Father on the other hand always said things about how I wont be able to get a job and it goes for my hair and my tattoos and my piercings. But I dont live with him and I have a great job so HA! My journey hit it's 1 year mark on Sept 19th and it has been very eye opening. I am a big girl and I get judged for my weight often, Since my journey began I have really gotten comfortable in my own body and my natural beauty. I occasionally will get dressed up to go out and worry about how I look. I had lost 70 lbs in 2008 and have gained it all back plus 20 lbs. I am getting back on track with my weight. I have a great job, an amazing boyfriend (who likes my dreads) and a great job! Now I just need to get out of debt, save a ton of money buy an RV and travel the US! I love my dreads and hope to have them for 20+ years!
Yeh your right, their doesn't have to be any real religeous or deep message behind dreads, though some do; if you want dreads and think they look beautiful/cool, who cares what others think. Cherice said:
I'm just prefacing this by saying that I was a kid during the 1990s and back then the epitome of the "cool, rebellious teen" had dreadlocks. Everywhere I went, there they were too!
Maybe it's my subconscience trying to project that same "I'm so cool" attitude, but I just think that they look so beautiful. I don't think I need a better reason to style my hair the way I want other than thinking that it's gorgeous.
I'm only a month in, and at times I do miss having loose hair, but I know that when my dreads mature and actually LOOK like dreads that I'll never regret it. Mine have lost a ton of length already, (my hair was waist length when I started, now it's about 2 inches shorter) and I miss that too, but it's hair, and it'll grow back out.
I'm currently LOVING the loops and kinks that are appearing every day and the frizz and mess is so uncontrollable. It makes me feel just as wild and powerful as the lion on the top of this site.
always liked the look of locks,love having long hair,got tired of brushing and putting lots of product into my hair to make it look presentable (Fine curly hair type the type you carn't do anything with )Answer let my hair dread it can now grow and I don't give a shit what others think of it
Dreads are a very personal and spiritual journey its like a lesson from your hair. It teaches you to be less vain. Thats how I feel about this process. I respect my mother earth and feel that this is a way to show her a respect and by growing the roots of my soul I shall receive her blessings. :D
@mark-the-shark
14 years ago
10 posts
i am loving all the answers guys and gals!! and like others said it doesnt have to be a super deep religious trip. as long as we respect our dreads and those of others
@lisandre-tessier
14 years ago
17 posts
I've been working in summer camp for 3 years. It changed my life, and the vision I have of it. This summer, I decided to ask one of the couselors I admire the most (for his way with children and his knowledge of the woods) to dread my head. He used T&R, no wax and lots of patience. Alongside with that, he tought me stuff about plants and ... well, he tought me to relax.To me, my dreadies are a pillow, a comfort, sometimes an armor, but most of all, roots.Also, about a week and a half ago, my gorgeous boyfriend decided he wanted some too. He has long blond curly hair and it would always tangle up into one mono-dread after one week of not washing. He saw it as the 'natural' thing to do. He didn't like the perspective of having to separate sections if he went natural.So I did T&R on him, patiently, for the straight 5 hours it took. Yup, to my great admiration, he insisted on doing it all in one sitting. And well, now, he's proud of finally letting his beautiful mane down
Izzy, i think u and I have similar reasons-I always loved the way dreadlocks look, & as a kid I remember thinking about how people with dreadlocks seemed to glow from some inner light. I knew my mother would never let me, and I worried about what other people might say. To deter me further, whenever I asked about how dreads were formed, esp. in straight hair, I got ridiculous answers.Fast forward to this year: Right before burning man, I found you tube vids uploaded by one eyeheartchrist . He posted his own dreadlock timeline to show that all anyone can have dreads, dreads = time + nothing. That whole week in the desert I was thinking about it.Then, mid burn week, came the defining moment. Riding my bike along the outer rings of the city, I came along a row of old skool art cars. I love art cars, and having made one myself, I just had to stop. One of those art cars moved me to tears. TEARS! It was pink, with a giant bra over the hood, made of bras. And all over the van, were products marketed solely to women- lipsticks, mirrors, false nails, hair rollers, jewelry- all products touted as making the consumer more beautiful. On the side, it read: "who profits from your self-loathing?" it hit me, hard.I began to cry, as I walked around, carefully examining the vehicle, contemplating the message. On the back, all those little plastic play food we get as little girls, playing "house" & a single watching eye, along with the words "I look fat? By whose measure?" As a fat young woman, (who grew up being teased, who only knew one year of being "thin" and even that only after a summer of disordered eating) I had been freed.I cried still, as I went away, so hard that my husband noticed and stopped, concerned. I tried to explain the thoughts in my head- "it just got me to thinking, what would I be like, how would my life be different, if our culture didn't place so much emphasis on physical beauty. I mean, esp. women's beauty. everyday we are pressured to strive for beauty, and a lot of the pressure is generated by the advertising industry and the media. If it weren't for all that, how differently would I feel about myself? Would I be confident? Could even I love myself the way that I am?"So thus began my journey to self acceptance. I will refuse to be made to feel like less of a woman simply because I am over the weight others feel i should be. Because that's nonsense. I can be beautiful, and feel pretty and be confident in myself. I can even be healthy without fitting into a size 12 or smaller. I am beautiful the way that god made me, and so I shall be.And you know what, since I quit tryin to guilt myself for eating something i shouldnt and I quit worrying about a lot of things that are superficial and quit worrying what people think of me and just tried to let my true self shine a little more, I lost a lil weight. not that I care either way anymore, but it goes to prove a point.To quote Mr. Bob Marley, "Ev'ry little t'ing, gonna be alright" Izzy-licious said:
I have wanted them for as long as I can remember. I at first was afraid of what others would think and my mother was supportive like she is about nearly everything after I discuss why I am into something. My Father on the other hand always said things about how I wont be able to get a job and it goes for my hair and my tattoos and my piercings. But I dont live with him and I have a great job so HA! My journey hit it's 1 year mark on Sept 19th and it has been very eye opening. I am a big girl and I get judged for my weight often, Since my journey began I have really gotten comfortable in my own body and my natural beauty. I occasionally will get dressed up to go out and worry about how I look. I had lost 70 lbs in 2008 and have gained it all back plus 20 lbs. I am getting back on track with my weight. I have a great job, an amazing boyfriend (who likes my dreads) and a great job! Now I just need to get out of debt, save a ton of money buy an RV and travel the US! I love my dreads and hope to have them for 20+ years!