My First Piercing Experience
At A Glance Author piercednpainted Contact piercednpainted@bme.anon IAM piercednpainted When Ten years ago or more Artist Dr. Balien Studio Doctor's Office Location cornfields of illinois My first piercing experience is not the typical experience everyone writes about here on bme. This was back in the late 60's before the "trend" started up. Let's roll back to 1969, when I was 9 years old, I remember looking at women with beautiful earrings in their ears. I wanted them so bad. I was totally fascinated by the shiny hoops in their ears. I was a petite little girl with long flowing blonde hair to my waist. I asked my mother if I could get my ears pierced. She said the only way I would be allowed to get my ears pierced was if I cut my hair to a pixie. For you that don't know what a pixie is, it is really short like a boy's hair cut. I was heartbroken because I loved my long blonde hair. My mother thought I would never agree to it. One thing she did not know was that I truly desired above all was to have beautiful earrings like all the women wore. I finally agreed.
She called the doctor and made an appointment for me to get my ears pierced. This was before the malls and the piercing guns, this was before the body modification shops. So the doctor office was the only place to get it safely done. I was excited and hurt at the same time because I knew that for me to have the lovely shinny hoops in my ears I would have to sacrifice my long blonde hair.
The first stop though was to get my hair cut off, to get the dreaded pixie cut. My mother took me to the barber shop. I remember sitting in the chair crying because of this sacrifice that I was making for my shinny earrings. Through the tears I seen my long blonde locks fall to the floor. With each snip of the scissors I watched my coveted long hair turn into an ugly boy hair cut. Back in the 60's it was thought that all girls must have long hair to be female. I also remember sitting on my great grandmother's lap, both of us crying because my long hair was gone. My samie did not want me to cut my hair, she loved combing and putting it up in piggy tails. I can still hear samie arguing with my mother about cutting my hair off. Now the long beautiful blond hair was totally gone. My mother did not care if it was short or not because it was nothing but a hassle for her when it was long. This way she didn't want to have to comb it and fix it in the mornings before school. This was perfect way to get it chopped off so it would be easier for her. She had no thought about me or what pain it brought me having to sacrifice my golden long locks.
Next stop was the doctor's office! I, again, was totally petrified, my mother just informedme that they would use a BIG needle to pierce my ear lobes so that they could fit in thepretty earrings. Well to a 9 year old that was some scary stuff! The 18 ga hypo needle was the biggest sharpest thing I ever saw! I remember shaking with fear as we waited inthe waiting room to be called back into the office. It seemed that I waited in that waitingroom forever even though it was like only 10 mins. It was the longest 10 mins I everwaited. The smell of antiseptic assaulted my little nose as I sat impatiently waiting for ourname to be called.
The time had come, my name was called and my small form trembled as I walked behind my mother down the longest hallway ever. Upon entering the room my mother lifted me onto the examination table. After another eternity the doctor came in, his opposing tall form with the typical white coat towered over me. They discussed what they were going to do. Gazing over at the tray beside the table I shivered, knowing that soon I would have the biggest needle in the world shoved through my ears. The doctor washed his hands and grabbed a small marker. Asking me to look at him, he first marked one ear then the other,moving my head back and forth to make sure they were even. He asked me to lay downon the exam table and he placed a small cork behind my ear, then taking the needle heshoved it through one ear. I was trying so hard to be brave but a small whimper escaped my nine year old lips. The sharp pain coursed through my small form as the first ear was assaulted with the hyponee dle. He then slipped in the earring my mother had brought. They were small gold studs for my mother refused to allow me the hoops, worried I would catch them on something in my rowdy play of a nine year old child. A small flow of tears slipped down my eyes as I braved myself for the next ear. Again the doctor put a cork behind the second ear and shoved the bright "large" 18 ga needle through. Another small whimper escaped my brave form as he placed the second gold stud in my ear.
He helped me sit up and holding up a mirror I gazed into it seeing myself with the prettiest gold earrings in my ears. At that moment even though my heart was broke because of the horrid haircut it was all worth it. To have the gold studs through my ears like all the pretty women I admired had. To this day I remember every moment of that past, of the sacrifice of my long blonde hair, the sharp piercing pain of the big ass needle, the fright of being nine years old waiting for the unknown. To this day everytime I get pierced I remember my first piercing and of the fear and sacrifice I had made when I was just nine years old. Yes this story is about a haircut and my first piercing, but what it truely is about is the sacrifice we all make when we make the choice of body modification.