There is more felicity on the far side of baldness than young men can possibly imagine. ~Logan Pearsall Smith

My grandson Griffin turned 15 a few weeks ago. He’s in love, conniving to drive at every opportunity and longing to be 16; in short a teenager.  Did I mention he’s also the heartthrob of his school over the years?  He’s got small town Justin Bieber status, or so I’ve heard, although he’s much too modest to say it to me!

Oh, did I also mention his hair, thick, dark brown, straight, slightly long and always combed just right?  I’m sure a source of pride and a little vanity, but, hey, he’s human too. We all have our vanities and they last a lifetime. Unfortunately, many of our vanities are controlled by our genes which are beyond our abilities to manipulate.

My daughter, Kim, and Griffin were talking about genes and their impact on our lives.  She was telling him that certain genetic traits are carried in the mother’s DNA and passed along to her offspring, while others are conveyed primarily by the father. For instance, she said, the mother carries part of the genetic pattern that determines her son’s potential hair loss. “I passed along to you what I got from my father (me).”

Since I’m substantially bald, Griffin thought for an instant and said, “No! That’s not going to happen to my hair, is it?!”  Now I see what’s important to a teenager these days, it’s not the content of your heart, it’s the pattern of your hair!  Sorry pal, we have reached the limit of unconditional love!  We all have our vanities after all.