Do you like to braid hair?

Tweet

When I was in college, my girlfriend had really long hair. One of the things I liked to do when we weren't studying or making whoopie was braiding her hair. When I had my horse, I used to braid her mane, just for fun. She loved the attention. I think "grooming" is a universal form of passing time and showing affection. I've seen videos of primates grooming each other and eating the lice in their partner's hair. Once during Friday "Pretend Shabbat," I pretended to be plucking the lice and eating them from the head of the little girl who had found her way into my lap. A couple of the parents there saw what I was doing and laughed. When I worked with mostly black folks at the drug rehab in Oakland, I noticed that the parents spent a lot of time making braids for each other. When my hair was longer, some of my little black girls in the program gave me little pig tails like theirs. When Horse Jr. grew his hair long, I gave him his first ever braid. I had told him about primate grooming, and he would sometimes come over with his brush, say the work "grooming," and proceed to sit on the floor. I don't know if grooming is an odd "father-son" activity, but I enjoyed it. He told me that I yanked his hair less than his mom. Anyway, I like braiding hair. Is braiding a part of your repertoire? Do you enjoy it? I'll try to find a picture of Horse Jr.'s first braid.