Dear Bridget
The only woman who understands
barbershops is a woman barber.
The rest just pretend,
call it a haircut
when it’s an awakening,
a becoming of becoming
who we can be, shaping
rough edges that make us
men. What makes us men
is more than talcum and shears—
we need eyes to see our ugly,
ears to hear our fears,
razor blades to shave away
what no longer serves us
as men.
Step in unkept.
Step out a new man,
less of you but more complete,
now aware that what could be
can be. You are what no other man
can be.
“What will it be?”