On Monday (19/03/12), I was shocked and angered after reading an article on news.com.au (http://www.news.com.au/breaking-news/national/school-suspends-boy-after-shaving-head-for-charity/story-e6frfku9-1226303970981). A year nine student, a 14/15 year old boy, shaved his head as part of World's Greatest Shave in support of a friend battling leukemia. To me this is such a noble things for anyone to do, let alone a teenager whom is influenced by media more than any other age group. Would he be made to feel like an outcast for shaving his head? Would his peers respect and admire his decision to shave his head for such a worthy cause? I know that when I was his age, I wouldn't have been brave enough to do something so bold as to shave my head for fear of what other people would do, say or think of me.
This brave boy was then SUSPENDED from school all because his hair didn't coincide with the school's "grooming policy", and will be made to wear a cap (to cover his head and his statement of support) until his hair grows back to within the school's acceptable grooming standards.
I wasn't going to post anything further than a tweet on this subject, speaking out against this school's behaviour, but I have heard some rather ignorant comments made about the World's Greatest Shave and those who participate in it, and decided that I couldn't keep silent on this topic anymore.
Before I go any further, here are a few facts about the World's Greatest Shave -
To further prove to those ignorant people out there making comments on something they probably don't understand, I want to introduce you to a friend of mine.
This is S, or Batman. He's just a regular guy who did something extraordinary. He shaved his lovely locks "to help people", and in the process raised over $480.00!
I've been chatting with him over a few days trying to understand what prompted him to do something so selfless, and have been amazed by his big heart and desire to help someone else out; even if he doesn't seem to think it's too much of a big deal.
These are a few of the questions that I really wanted to share from our conversations.
What was running through your mind before they started shaving your head?
I didn't really think too much about it, it was just something I was doing and something people did for charity.
And while they were shaving your head?
I was more concerned about the boys not shaving off an eye brow to really be concerned with what was happening on top.
Can you describe those first moments after they had finished? What was your first thoughts on the "final product"?
After I was like, "Oh, I have a shaved head, how on earth did that happen?" I don't really remember the thought process that got me there to be honest.
Have a lot of people come up to you and asked why you shaved your head? If so, have you told them you did it for charity?
Not really. Those who know me know I did it for charity but for those who don't, I'm just a guy with a shaved head. It's not that exciting or distinguishing from any other guy with any other haircut.
Is participating in the World's Greatest Shave something you see yourself doing again in the future?
I probably would. The whole point of this was to get my friends to donate, if no one cares that I'm going to shave my head next year then I'll just be some guy with a haircut that helped no one. So basically if others are keen, I'm keen.
And my favourite question I saved till last -
Do you regret it?
Not at all! I got to help a lot of people doing it; it's definitely a great experience.
The money raised by people like S, and many others, go towards an amazing cause. They have helped bring a little light into the dark lives of families battling this awful disease. They have taken the plunge and done something extremely brave; the least we can do as spectators to their bravery can do is sponsor or donate to the World's Greatest Shave. Just click here - http://www.worldsgreatestshave.com/ - it's simple, and can help change lives.
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