Carner and His Double Cowlick

Perhaps my cousin Carner has passed the stage infamously known as the “terrible twos.” At the age of three, however, he is no less mischievous or hyper active. The day before Thanksgiving, my aunt asked me to accompany her to the barbershop. Yes, it was that time again. Carner was going to get another haircut. “Maybe you can help him stay calm today, hmm?” my aunt asked. I knew I could try, but he’s a restless little toddler and I was not sure if my presence would keep him behaved.

Once we entered the shop, an elderly Asian man with a wide grin pointed with his scissors toward a tiny chair. My cousin caught a glimpse of the scissors and immediately responded with his eyes closed and his head shaking. “No, no, noooo,” he squeaked adamantly. The barber chuckled, but my aunt did not. “Not today Carner. No tantrums today,” she reprimanded him. After a bit of squirming, Carner eventually settled into the seat.

In just about ten minutes or so, the impossible task had been accomplished. My aunt sighed in relief once the barber finished up the job with a few last snippets and a quick comb through his hair. “Sorry if he was fidgeting too much,” my aunt apologized with pink cheeks. “Oh, no problem, really,” the barber assured her, “It’s because of this. Two. Two means bad.” He pointed to the two cowlicks on my cousin’s head. “Really?” my aunt responded, almost with sarcasm. “Yes, yes,” he said, “Two. Two means naughty boy.”

I wondered where he got that strange idea. As I walked to the car with my aunt, I asked her, “Do you believe it?” She turned around. “No, of course not! It’s just a silly belief,” she stated with confidence. “Your grandma said a lot of things like that before. You know the older generation and their stories.”