Holidays at Aunt Nelly's. by Domko

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My name is Michael. As a boy I lived only with my mother. When I was 11 years old, it was in 1972, I had a month of vacation to spend with my aunt. She was my mother's older sister. She was alone, she had no husband or children. She had many trips planned for me for the whole month.
I had longer hair, covering my ears, eyes and reaching over my shirt collar. In school at that time, about half of the boys had long hair and went to modern salons, and the other boys had short haircuts from old-fashioned barbers. Since I was little, my mother took me to her hairdresser for a little haircut.
At the end of the school year, my mother had little time to take me to her hairdresser to have my hair done. I was looking forward to it because my hair could grow another month and I could have it even longer.
On the first day of vacation, Aunt Nelly came for me so that we could travel together to her city. Before we left, mother told Aunt Nelly that she didn't have time to get my hair cut and asked her to come with me and get my hair cut.
After arriving at Aunt Nelly's, I unpacked my things. Then Aunt Nelly told me that we would go to the barber's, that it was only a short distance from her house. I wanted to talk her into going another day, but she said we are going now.
We walked for about 10 minutes when I noticed a rotating pole on one of the houses, which indicated that it was a barbershop. Above the door was a large Morrison barber shop sign. Haircuts for men and boys.
When we entered the barber shop it looked very old fashioned with one barber chair. The barber was a smaller older man with very short hair. In his chair was a boy probably older than me. The boy was near completion and his hair was already quite short. There were 4 elderly gentlemen and two small boys with their mother on the wooden waiting chairs. I estimated one to be 6 and the other to be about 8 years old. Aunt Nelly sat down next to the boys' mother and started talking to her. The boys' mother said that she gives her boys haircuts every month. Aunt Nelly was very interested.
A moment later, the boy got up from the barber's chair and paid for his haircut. Some of my classmates wear such short hairstyles, for which they always get a lot of ridicule. When the barber cut the hair of the 3 older men in the barber's chair, the younger of the brothers sat down and the barber gave him a very short haircut. His older brother had his hair cut in the same way. When they left, an older gentleman was already sitting in the barber's chair and I knew it was my turn after him. I told Aunt Nelly that I go with my mother to her hairdresser, who always just fixes the ends of my hair. Aunt Nelly just smiled and said don't worry Michael.
When I sat down in the chair, the barber wrapped me in a sheet and started combing my hair. He asked Aunt Nelly what hairstyle we will give the boy? Aunt Nelly replied to cut my hair like the two brothers. I turned around and shouted that I didn't want to cut my hair like that. At that, the barber asked my aunt if he should cut my hair on the top with number 2 knives, as the boy's aunt answered Yes.
I tried to protest but then I felt cold metal on my forehead and the scissors started moving. A strip of cut hair appeared on the top of the head, Barber worked quickly. He was turning my head and I could see almost all my hair on the sheet. When the scissors turned off for a while, I saw myself in the mirror. He only had very short hair on his entire head.
But the barber pushed my head to the left side and removed the hair from the entire right side with fine scissors and did the same on the left side of my head. He bent my head forward and started cutting the back of my neck with them. When he finished cutting, he dusted off the sheet and applied white cream to the sides and back of his head. He gradually scraped off. When the barber finished the final touches, he asked my aunt if she was happy with my new haircut. She was very satisfied. The barber told her that I have a well-built head and it's a shame that I cover it with hair. He said I should get my hair cut more often. The barber took a hand mirror and stood behind me to show me the back of my head and sides. Everything was clean shaven. I only had about 1/4 inch long hair on the top of my head.
The whole stay at Aunt Nelly's I was thinking about how much my hair would grow when I get home.
When my hair had grown about 1/2 inch and I was due to go home in 2 days, Aunt Nelly took me to Morrison's Barbershop. I also got a short haircut.
After returning home, she told everything to my mother and how the barber said that I don't have hair to cover my well-built head and to get regular short haircuts. She also said that the lady at the barber shop said that her boys go to the barber shop every month.
I was just looking forward to my hair growing back and I went to her hairdresser again with my mother. Well, the boys who knew me could burst out laughing when they saw me. I never want to go to an old fashioned barber shop again.

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