The Grey Evolution

Grey in 50 or more shades and tones!

The lockdown prompted new grey variants such as salt, pepper, pewter, silver, and charcoal. Grey is the colour of elegance, knowledge, and wisdom and it is considered a classic, dignified, and mysterious colour.

We start greying at different ages and to varying degrees. Spotting a grey strand is a rude awakening, and while some choose to conceal the grey strands, others choose to embrace the fading pigments. Some of our parents, aunts, uncles, and even grandparents still proudly wear the “jet-black” look. To quote Dr. Howard Murad, “Aging is a fact of life. Looking your age is not.” They sometimes wonder why young people want to appear older than they are!

During the lockdown and restricted access to saloons, many people struggled to accept “the grey.” Few suffered from “Grey-Locks Syndrome,” and the common symptoms were tantrums behind closed doors, plucking all the grey strands and ending up with bald patches, mowing down hair, screaming “are they stress or wisdom highlights?” and other behaviours. It was a grey dawn on the morning of the lockdown, and it only got greyer as the days, weeks, and months passed.

With saloon doors closed and hair colours no longer serving as a canvas, their loud marketing slogans, “Love is in the Hair” and “Live Colourfully or Dye Trying” were muted to “You’ve got the Roots, and We’ve got the Boot.”

The Silver Lining in the Hair sparked a flood of information on the internet, with people looking for ways to get rid of grey hair, an abundance of internet domain space for promoting hair products, and U-Tube tutorials on how to conceal the glistening roots. I’m not sure if they were particularly beneficial or flattering. Meanwhile, the roots sprouted silver ribbons with a distinct salt and pepper flavour.

If going grey is the only option for few of our family and friends, we must help them through the transition. I recommend that you “don’t make hair contact before making eye contact,” and that you avoid reacting to their tones and undertones.

It was a relatively quiet period within homes shortly after the lockdown, with no family mascots parading around or troll dolls showing-up for breakfast unannounced, or having to see every colour of the rainbow, foils from the kitchen rolled-up in hair, fashion-forward hairstyles, dip dyed hair, technicolour dandruff, and being subjected to Colour Blind Tests. There were only loud sighs of relief that the family had been spared from hair loss and baldness, at least for the time being, and that they would bear no resemblance to a few other members of the family.

I’m not sure about yours, but greying has always been a point of contention in my family for as long as I can remember, with each of us going grey while saving a few others from going grey. It is never the bleaching and chemical process’s fault to the poor 100,000 hair follicles. With heated debates, it was always a futile attempt, but not any longer, because we finally see everyone’s true colours! It’s a welcome, if not startling, sight.

With nowhere to go after failing the “black hair follicle test” and being the unfortunate recipient of the grey genes, the family can finally reach some sort of agreement on the Grey Evolutionary Theory. Is it from our parents, grandparents, or great grandparents? For the first time, future generations will be able to connect a complete chronological series of their grey roots and their evolution into GREYHOOD based on this theoretical evidence and hair follicle specimens.

Social media was flooded with illusions of different shades and patterns of grey and translucent strands, resulting in a “crowning revelation.” With pictures of young, middle-aged, and elderly people sharing their stories, experiences, embracing their natural look and exchanging dialogues. There is a new attitude, and a desire to own the “distinguished look.”

Is Grey the new colour of choice?

Surprisingly, but thankfully, the lockdown and restrictions resulted in a large number of people gaining freedom and empowerment. Limiting social activity to video chats was a subtle way to introduce the unfamiliar look. When finally out with family and friends, WOW! there’s a “stunning bunch” of people who have also shed inhibitions, been themselves, and let go of the so-called social stigma welcoming you on the bandwagon. There is no longer a large grey elephant in the room.

What a fitting end to such a difficult emotional and mental journey! As the saying goes, “Grey doesn’t mean that you’ve let go, just that you’ve let loose!”