having to get up early in the morning
to do my hair – it just didn’t suit my
lifestyle. So I knew I was going to do it.
But when it came to it I was shaking!”
Should more people Alana’s age do
things like this? “I think it’s a definite
thing we need to encourage.” The 16
year old said. “However it’s more about
personal spirit and it’s commitment
to an idea that we need to help kids
with, especially with things that people
are self-conscious of, I know a lot of
girls would never do it purely because
society wants them to have long hair.”
Is body image addressed well enough
in schools? “Loads of the teachers
have been extremely supportive of me
and I’ve had advice from most of them.
They’re all really friendly at Carterton
and you can trust any of the teachers.
And I feel like most of the students
here believe that as well. A lot of the
girls and guys would believe that
body image is not important. No-one’s
made any inappropriate comments
or said anything about my hair being
distracting. The teachers have been
doing a very good job there.”
It doesn’t sound like it’s the end
of Alana’s charity work. She is
considering growing her hair again
which could mean another cut in 2-3
years’ time. If this doesn’t happen
charity runs are in the pipeline,
meaning she can use one of her
passions, “I’ve never really thought
about life without sport” she says, to
help others – she still wants to raise
money for Carterton Football Club
and generally assist the progression
in cancer research. Another idea
doesn’t involve as much distance as
charity runs…“my twin sister and I were
thinking about raising more money by
doing a baked bean bath; we haven’t
found an appropriate date to do it
yet – maybe one when it’s slightly
warmer!”
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