Change. It’s inevitable. Often, it happens when we least expect it. Sometimes its good. Sometimes it’s bad. As I am going through a period of complete and utter change (re: entering a college setting, 959.9 miles away from home, taking new classes, doing my own laundry, learning how to make Ramen), I thought, “Kellen, why not add onto it?” And boy did I.

Throughout my life, I have had precisely three hairstyles: Long and curly, Short and Curly, and Brown. But now? Now, I’m back to my roots of blonde, my feet are firmly planted in the Maryland soil and I am looking towards the future. So why not get bangs?

We’ve all known someone with bangs. Blunt bangs, curly bangs, bad bangs, amazing bangs, Zooey Deschanel bangs, wispy bangs, and bangs that made your head look like that bowl that your grandmother always kept her fruit in. Most people have bangs when they are younger, but my mother always wanted to let my hair to long and curly.

As I’ve gone on this journey of self discovery over the past few months, I’ve learned that challenging myself, trying new things, is the only way for me to grow, to flourish, to shine. And it’s been a wholly rewarding experience. So I did something I’ve always wanted to do—I got bangs.

Sitting in the salon chair, I took a few deep breaths, heard the loud Snip! and my hair was gone. Laying in pretty blonde pieces on the floor. And it was my favorite thing I had ever done for myself. I looked older. I looked more mature. I looked confident because I felt confident. I felt like I had finally come into my own. I felt like I had embraced a side of me that I hadn’t known was there. It made laughing easier. It made me feel like I was ready to open up, all from a few snips of the hair.

Weeks later, imagining myself without bangs is almost as hard as it was imagining myself with bangs weeks ago. It’s become a signature look. One that I completely am willing to wear long into the future. My hair has never felt so happy and healthy, and I’m certain I haven’t either.