| Adapted from an online discussion. Dear Carolyn: I’m a year out from chemo and still officially cancer-free. Also, my hair is back to normal — yay. To celebrate, I had it dyed a beautiful violet shade, my favorite color. Now my dad is giving me so much grief about it. He keeps asking why I need everyone to notice me and ask about my cancer. I don’t care if anyone notices my hair; I did it for me. The color makes me smile every time I look in the mirror. And if anyone does mention the color, I tell them I did it because I like the color purple — I never mention cancer at all. Why would I want to talk about that? I feel good, I can run and hike again, and I want to focus on things like that. My dad refuses to accept my explanation because he believes everyone who does anything he considers out of the ordinary does it “to get attention” or to “freak people out.” I can’t seem to convince him how stupid that is, that people do things because they want to and it makes them happy. Can you think of a way to get through to him? I’m really tired of having to listen to him criticize my hair every time he sees me. — Celebrating | 
