From lioness to “china”—which translates to curly-haired in Spanish—I have been called these names since I was a child because of my untamable curls. Since birth, springs of brown sprouted from my head, creating a frizzy halo around my face and making my appearance look “messy.” I despised those labels and nicknames that came from my family and relatives because I disliked having curly hair. Silky straight hair, like my older sisters and Disney princesses had, is what I desired.

I often thought, “Why did I get the unlucky genetics to deal with such a hassle of hair?” As a child, Cinderella, my sisters, and Katy Perry were my beauty idols. Like any little girl does, I wanted to be the mirror image of them, so much so that I never wore my hair down and instead worked to withhold my curls in braids, ponytails, and straightened hair. However, with that I was also withholding my culture and restraining the potential of my natural beauty.

No matter how many sprays of hairspray, bobby pins, and hair ties I applied to my hair, there were always little flyaway curls poking out as if they were telling me, “Stop trying to get rid of me.” It was not until early high school that I chose not to conform to American beauty standards and realized the magic of free, natural hair. I developed a style of my own. I did this by learning how to care for my curls rather than brush them down to be restricted. It has become a new type of self-care that I wish I knew earlier in my life. I now embrace my inner Mia Thermopolis and Hermione Granger.

Now, I wonder why I despised my luscious curls as I scrunch them with mousse and believe it is because I am no longer heavily influenced by childhood idols of Cinderella, Katy Perry, and my sisters. It makes me realize the potency of the media images that children are exposed to at an impressionable age and how they influence self-image and ideals.

Times are changing, and now little girls and boys have Disney idols of color to look up to such as Moana and Mirabel, which is a more inclusive change from white, blond, thin princesses that descend from European folktales. Luckily, my seven year old niece is now being taught that color and culture is something to be celebrated and expressed to the world instead of conforming to Western beauty ideals, which was something that was lacking when I grew up.

Whether it is short, long, bald, curly, straight, blond, black, or rainbow-colored, we are all humans and hair is a piece of our identity. It shows the world a snippet of who we are, where we come from, and what we love. Assumptions can be based on our hair but underneath the surface is a brain full of thoughts and treasures that truly define who we are. This is the true natural beauty that an individual holds.