Tana Reiff - A Flair for Hair

O ne more spray and youre done! Jackie Jones said.

She was doing Tarias hair in her kitchen. The girl lived up the street. Taria was getting ready to go to the prom that night. Her mom watched every move as Jackie styled the girls hair.

She looks beautiful, said Tarias mom. More beautiful than I ever looked for a prom!

Jackie smiled. Taria did look beautiful. The girl was pretty to begin with. Now, with hundreds of curls around her face and down her back, she sparkled.

Who are you going to prom with? Jackie asked.

Robert Tenby, said Taria.

Well, I hope you have a wonderful time, Jackie said, smiling. I hope you never forget this night.

Just then, Jackies nine-year-old daughter Chloe came into the kitchen. Im going over to the store, said the little girl.

OK, Jackie said. You look both ways before you cross the street, you hear? And come right back home.

I will, Mom, said Chloe as she skipped off.

Do you remember your high school prom? Tarias mom asked Jackie.

Prom was not something Jackie liked to talk about. Not her own prom, anyway.

No, I dont remember, Jackie said. Because I didnt go to the prom. I wanted to go. I even had a beautiful golden dress all ready to go. Then I made a big mistake. I got mad one day and just dropped out of school.

Tears came into Jackies eyes. The school wouldnt let me go to the prom after that, she said. I still have that dress, though. It looks like new because I never did wear it.

Here you are, doing hair for a prom, said Tarias mom. And you never went yourself.

The prom was a long time ago, said Jackie. It doesnt matter anymore. What does matter is that I didnt finish high school.

You seem to do all right for yourself and your daughter, said Tarias mom. You get by with your job at Burger Bazaar. Seems to me you dont have it so bad.

I dont want to flip burgers my whole life, said Jackie. I wish I could be a real hairdresser. Id like to make a living at it. That used to be my dream.

Why isnt it still your dream? Taria asked her. You have a flair for hair!

Maybe so, but I would have to go to cosmetology school, said Jackie. You know, beauty school. You have to learn all this stuff and then pass a test to get a license. I dont even have a high school diploma. I cant even think about all that now.

There are ways, said Tarias mom. You can still get your diploma. And then maybe you can dig up some money to go to cosmetology school.

That all sounds too far for me to reach, said Jackie. Maybe youre right. I really dont have it so bad the way things are. Could be a lot worse!

Its not too late to make your life better, you know, said Tarias mom.

Jackie handed Taria a mirror. How do you like the back, honey?

I look like a princess! Taria said, holding the mirror.

Now, I want you and Robert to stop by here tonight, you hear? Jackie said. I want to take a picture of you in your prom dress with your princess hair.

Tarias mom started to hand Jackie some money. The same hairstyle would have cost twice as much in a salon. Still, Jackie wouldnt take the money.

No, this is on me, Jackie said. I do my neighbors and familys hair for fun.

Later, Taria and Robert stopped by on their way to the prom. Jackie just about cried when she saw them. Oh, youre more than a princess, honey. You two look like a king and queen!

After Chloe left to stay over at a friends house, Jackie ate dinner alone. Then she sat down to watch a movie. But her mind was somewhere else. If only, if only, if only kept going through her head. If only she had stayed in school. If only she hadnt been hanging out with Chloes dad ten years ago. If only she hadnt had a baby when she was so young. If only she had taken cosmetology classes back in high schooland not dropped out.

Instead, Jackie was living paycheck to paycheck. Maybe her life wasnt so bad. But it wasnt so great either. She did not want to spend the rest of her life crying over what might have been.

There was a time when she dreamed about what she would do with her life. She tried to remember when she had stopped dreaming. Then she had a thought. Maybe dreaming was what she was starting to do again right now.

A Flair for Hair

Beautiful for the Prom

A Flair for Hair