Fiery Redheads

When I was young

The only thing I wished

I had gotten from my paternal grandma

Was her hair

I dyed my hair

Every shade of red

That I could find

And never found the

Perfect penny

Reddish copper

Fire ginger

That she held until her nineties

No

Instead I thought

The only part of her I got

Was her height.

And while her tiny frame

Was willowy and beautiful, if petite,

My vertical challenge

Was matched with horizontal dominance

Yes I got my mother's hips

So unfair, I thought,

As I struggled with my sense of

Worth and beauty

Where my sister stood tall and curvy

A blond amazon

The best of both sets

Of genetics

And me next to her

The short frumpy brunette

And yet

It took me well into adulthood

To realize that

I did inherit more than my height from her

I inherited her sense of justice

Her refusal to accept the

Status quo

Her inability to judge

Her desire to improve

Her corner of the world

No matter who tried to stop her

Her passion

Her love

Her humor

Her hair

Because I am my grandmother's descendant

I am a redhead

You just can't see it