My Sister's First Haircut

My brother e-mailed me a copy of a note I had written to my mother back in 1960.  He called it "Donna's Confession."  It's one of those stories that we laugh about today, but it sure wasn't funny Thursday night, July 14, 1960.  

The summer of 1960 - sort of a lazy summer.  I was twelve.  My sister was five.  She had long, thick dark brown hair.  It was very pretty and had never been cut except for the bangs.  My mother loved brushing her hair and making it curl.  I kept offering to cut it, but mother wouldn't hear of it.  She was not going to cut my sister's hair. 

We lived with my grandmother and my mother worked second shift at a factory.  After dinner, my grandmother would go back into her sewing room and sew.  There wasn't much to do except watch the boys play baseball across the street, not that I didn't like doing that.  I'm not sure why but on this particular Thursday night in July,  I decided I was going to just trim my sister's hair.  Just a little.  We were upstairs in our room.  I got the scissors.  I sat my sister in a chair in front of the mirror on the dresser and brushed her hair out.  It was so long and just needed to be evened out a little.  Told her to hold still and began to cut.

I never had any problem cutting my own hair.  Her hair was so thick and I just couldn't seem to cut it straight.  Kept trying to even it out, but this was not going according to plan.  My sister just sat there - have no idea what was going through her mind.  Pretty soon I had cut her hair up to her shoulders.  Not good.  I stopped.  It was too late, the damage was done.  I couldn't put it back.  Mother was going to kill me.  And, oh, if Grandma sees this I'm in worse trouble than my mother killing me.

I called my best friend, Barbara, and told her what happened.  We talked in a whisper so that my grandmother wouldn't hear.  It was before cell phones when phones were actually tied to a line in the wall.  Our phone was in the foyer right outside my grandmother's sewing room.  After we talked (I was sure I would probably never see Barbara again), I went back upstairs and wrapped my sister's head with a hairnet so it just looked like her hair was up.  Put her in bed.  Once she was in bed, she didn't move.  I wrote a note to my mother and here is what I wrote:

Dear Mommy,  I did a terrible thing to Ann you can possible guess.I got my wish, but I wish I didn't do it.  Ann likes it, but she is afraid she will get in trouble or I will.  I know I will but she didn't do nothing except move.  I cut her hair!  I was only going to even it up, but she moved and then I had to cut more off.  I'm sorry, very sorry but don't tell Grandma what I did.  I thought I better tell you what I did instead of you finding out about it yourself.  You'd be madder if I tried to hide it.  I save her hair.   Donna.   Thursday July 14 - 1960 

After writing the note (did you notice how I tried to weasel out of it being my fault and that my sister liked her haircut?), I also got in bed and as far down in the covers as I could get.  She was going to be so mad.  When my mother got home that night, I was still awake.  She came upstairs and into our room.  She saw the note and picked it up.  She read it.  And oh, was she mad.  She yelled and cried.  I didn't say a word.  I think she was afraid to spank me, she was so mad.  She would say that this was the worst thing I ever did. 

At the time, I knew that I had done something that hurt my mother and I really was very sorry.

Here is a picture of my mother with my sister and brother soon after my horrific crime.  Please note that I am not in the picture - I was probably still locked up in the dungeon.  Yes, I was still in the dungeon, please note how happy my brother is;  just all smiles isn't he.....and my sister?  She doesn't seem too upset with her new haircut.  Yes, Eddie and Annie seem to be doing just fine without me while I was wasting away in the dungeon.      

Earth Angel

"Earth Angel" by The Penguins was first released in October of 1954 out of Los Angeles, CA.  By February, 1955, "Earth Angel" had hit #1 on all the major R&B charts.  My sister was born on February 12th and this became my mother's song for her.  At the time we lived in the State St. house and I remember sitting in the living room listening to this song on the record player with my brother and mother holding my baby sister and telling her that she was her earth angel.  It was a very happy time.  This is my brother, Eddie, and I with our baby sister, Annie.  She was about 8 mos in this picture.  I am 7 and Eddie is 6.

(click on the link below to listen to the song)

The Penguins - Earth Angel 1954

OK, let me tell you about the night of February 11, 1955.  It was Friday and it had been a pretty cold day, only getting up to around 10 degrees (isn't the internet wonderful).  My mother seemed a little nervous that evening.  We all knew that we were going to have a baby brother or sister soon and just couldn't wait.  Mother would let us feel the baby move inside of her tummy - it was all just so exciting.  Mother kept saying 'just any day, now.'  My mother packed some clothes for us and a bag for herself, then told us we needed to sleep in our clothes so we would be ready.

Sure enough, sometime in the middle of the night, mother woke my brother and I up.  Since we didn't have a car, she called a cab to come get us.  We would be going to our grandmother's and mother would be going to the hospital.  My grandmother lived at the 34th Street house.  We were dropped off at grandma's and my mother was taken to Methodist hospital.

The next day, my grandmother told us we had a baby sister.  I can't remember if my grandmother went to see my mother and my new baby sister that day or the next day.  My brother and I couldn't go because kids weren't allowed.  We couldn't wait until my grandmother got home so she could tell us what our baby sister looked like.  When my grandmother came in the door, she was all smiles and told us how pretty our baby sister was and that we would be able to see her in a few more days.  Then she described my sister.  Grandma said that she had long, straight dark hair and dark eyes.  I was panic-stricken!  Long, straight dark hair?  My baby sister looked like Buster Brown?  This can't be.  I didn't say anything.  My grandmother didn't seem too concerned, but I was mortified.

After a couple of days, my mother's friend, Joyce, went to get my mother from the hospital and take her home and then Joyce came and picked my brother and I up.  On the way home, Joyce told us how beautiful our baby sister was.  I knew better but didn't say anything.  My sister looks like Buster Brown.  We walked into the house and went straight to the bedroom where my mother and new baby sister were.  My mother was holding her.  As I looked down at my new baby sister, my heart just stopped.  She was the most beautiful baby I had ever seen.  She didn't look like Buster Brown.  Just instant love.  I asked if I could hold her and my mother said I had to sit on the bed and put a pillow on my lap.  As she laid my sister on the pillow, I just couldn't take my eyes off of her.  She was just absolutely beautiful.  She was definitely an 'earth angel'.