No Shave November at PW
Things get hairy at PWHS as students raise awareness for cancer research in the month of November.
November 2015
Bo Flint '16
There is nothing better to represent the month of November than some good facial hair. The spirit of facial hair dates back to when man first stepped foot on this earth. Facial hair is a symbol for manly being and is the premise behind many individuals’ identities. Think of the world’s most influential men; odds are that over half of them had their own unique trim to their sacred face flow. Charlie Chaplin, Honest Abe, Teddy Roosevelt, Salvador Dali, and ZZ Top all had their own centerpieces for self pride and individual glory.
Here at PW, we also have some fine-looking works of facial hair that are consistently kept and well attended. Specifically now in November, many men make a new identity for themselves as human beings with an established mustache or beard. This phenomenon is known as “No Shave November,” and its purpose is to bring awareness to men’s health issues. First starting out almost a decade ago to help bring awareness to the Prostate Cancer Foundation of Australia and curated by two Australian men, this event has grown to an international event to support not just cancer, but all forms of male health issues.
There are minimal rules to follow on no-shave.org, and they are to simply put down that razor and let nature take its course. The premise of the hair growing is to hopefully spread cancer awareness to others by a topic of discussion revolving around it.
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“Wait, if I am a girl and I cannot grow facial hair, what can I do to contribute?” Great question! What many women have started doing is to also retire their razors for that month and embrace the hair too. It may seem strange but it is all for a great cause.
One particular PW senior is taking his facial hair seriously this year. I sat down with Adam Brock to ask him a few questions and begin documenting his beard growth. If you don't know Adam Brock, there is one thing you should learn about him, which is his ability to produce a bountiful beard upon his face. When it comes down to thickness, lusciousness, and coloration, Brock can prevail in all categories. His thick, black beard is a symbol for his being as a humble and gentle, yet larger than life figure.
“It is certainly full and thick and it adds a couple years onto my character,” Brock noted as I talked with him about his beard. I also asked him what kind of advantages a beard brings, to which he replied “it is a nice thing to have in the winter” and it is a chick magnet “only for older women.” Also, I asked him about how long he takes to get a good beard going, and his response was “a week and a half.” This man can grow a beard! A fellow classmate commented “that’s impressive,” and Brock responded with “it is involuntary.”
Stay tuned for the next issue where you can see his beard progression.
Even if you can’t grow that impressive beard, or that studly mustache, feel free to put the razor down for awareness. Girl or guy, old or young, please spread the word of awareness in any way you can, and also feel free to donate to the research, prevention, and aid for those fighting cancer.
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