At this stage kids are pretty transparent about emulating the people they love. A year ago she wanted to wear pants like me. Or shoes like me. Today she was dead set on getting a haircut like me.

We are aware that we influence our kids. Even subconsciously. I know courage is conscious. Hopefulness. Hard work. I used to be very discreet at a kid. Not get noticed. I wouldn’t make a fuss about anything. My needs were met. My parents seemed happy when I complied.

Cutting my hair short feels rebellious. And easy and cool. I got a short haircut despite the discomfort of my mom. She got used to it. But Ivy is the wild one. She doesn’t look back when making dramatic changes. She pleaded with us to buzz the sider of her hair. As we had dinner, she giggled and said: “I finish my meal and then …dad, you know you need to cut my hair!”

She was still excited about it in the morning. And I let her set the pace for how she feels about it.