Izincwadi eziya eMelika

Do I need a tissue for this?

Dear Dawn, I hope you and your family are well. It's hard to believe that when you started cutting my children's hair, they were toddlers. Now they're in their 20s. We knew raising children was one of life's greatest adventures. But it was also the hardest job either of us ever had. In middle school, you realize swaddling a newborn was nothing compared to helping them navigate.

Friend drama, not making a team, feeling like they don't belong, or realizing that they made someone else feel that way. You may not know, but Knox is now a senior in college. He gives tours as a student ambassador and helps recruit new students. He works at a summer camp for kids with autism, tutoring, and teaching archery. He is truly one of the kindest people I've ever known.

He'll graduate in May with a degree in anthropology, and he is also transgender.

This, of course, you do know because you were one of my first calls after he came out. I explained the situation and asked if you would cut his hair. And you simply said that you'd be honored. A friend of mine happened to see him leaving from one of these first haircuts and told me he seemed to be standing taller and smiling brighter. She said she'd never seen him happier.

I'll always be grateful. It was you who was there when a haircut wasn't just a haircut. And I can only hope more people realize what we learned. That all parents want their kids to be safe, healthy, and happy people,

and treat others with respect. We all want the same thing. And you were the first to teach me that, Dawn. Jeez.

I wish you the best for whatever comes next in your parenting journey, and thank you from the bottom of my heart for the difference you've made in mine. Sincerely, Mary Edwards.

Like, you just want your kid to be happy and healthy and loved, and it really is what we all want, right? You just keep figuring it out, you know? You just keep figuring it out.