Padawan, Obiwan-abe, whatever you would want to call it, I call it, the 'tail'. It's been with me for slightly more than a year and I admit I've grown pretty fond of it. So, to cut it off really took some amount of guts and letting go.
It was last June that I decided to sport this new hair-do, trimming off my long black hair to suit a spikier look, yet, having the tail to just, 'be different'. It was so short back then, nothing more than 5cm. It was difficult to plait. It stood out even more and caught alot of people by surprise. For a moment, I liked the attention, but it became a norm after a while.
A year passed with me having to go for job interviews and final year project presentations with my tail. I didn't really care, cause I was still a student. Working adults could forgive me for that.
Not until this August. I had an interview for Shell IT for a contract position. I really wanted to work for Shell no matter what. If I couldn't get into their graduates programme, I would take up a contract job and somehow find myself as a permamnent staff in a year. That was my plan. I so wanted to make a good impression on the interviewer that I took the bold step to part with my 'tail'. It wasn't easy; Over a years worth of memory in it. But for Shell, I would take this sacrifice. First impressions do make the difference. I took some pictures to remind me of how it was. I had hopes of re-doing this hairstyle again if my future job allows me a slack in attire and looks. I'd resurrect the 'tail'.
The day before the Shell interview, I carefully cut off the tail and had a decent hair cut. Alas, to my dismay, Shell said the job wasn't suitable for me....whatever that means. In life, I've got to learn to face rejections. So...no biggie... It hurt for a bit....I felt that cutting off my tail was in vain...I didn't get the job. Maybe this is just not the path I'm to take. I did pray for God to open the right doors and close the unsuitable ones.
This parting of the tail strongly signifies my transition of a student, to a young working adult. It's time to change my perception towards some things. It's time to develop a new mindset. It's time to grow-up and be a man.
First month of the hair cut last June
Just prior to the 'circumcision'
What's left of it
