FAREWELL TO HAIR

by Teri Hanson

I stood outside on a windy day
and ran my fingers through my hair.
Long strands of silky threads
blew across the lawn.
They glistened in the sun,
too many to count.

I imagined a nest,
lined with my mane,
woven by a mama bird.
The babies nestled, snug inside,
warmed by my fallen tresses.

Now on the wintry nights,
when my head is cold,
I pull my wool cap
over my ears and smile
as I dream of baby birds
sleeping in my hair.

When I first started losing my hair from the chemo, my hair was literally blowing off my head, says breast cancer survivor Terri Hanson, forty-three. It made me very sad. But then I thought of baby birds sleeping in it, and I thought it would be okay. Hanson heard about the Cancer Poetry Project, wrote her first poem, and sent it off.

Writing this poem was just the beginning, she says. Having cancer has taught me that I need to live for today and unleash my creative talents. Hanson has since designed a breast cancer logo, which is being placed on merchandise for breast cancer patients and survivors.

Hanson lives with husband Donald and their three teenagers in Maple Grove, Minnesota. As for her hair, she has kept it short. People tell me it fits my personality she says.