"Hello ..... Roy's Barber Shop ..... Roy here", the voice answered.  "Hi, Mrs. Taylor ..... what can I  do for you.
      "Sorry to hear that - tell him to get well.
      "Well, I won't be here, but I'll tell Doris and Rose", Roy continued.  "No problem.  I 'm sure you'll like the way the girls cut hair.  I'll tell Rose to cut Mary's hair.  I am sure Mary will like Rose.
      "all right, see you in an hour.  Tell Stan to take care, ..... and maybe we can go fishing when he gets better".
      I hung up the telephone and called for the boys and their sister to get ready.  I would drop them off at Roy's to get their hair cut, while I took Stan, their father and my love, to the doctors.  We usually got our hair cut as a family, and have been going to Roy's since Stan and I moved here seventeen years ago.  Roy had a nice barber shop and has always catered to men, women, and children.
      But, he was getting up in age so a few months ago he heard about Doris and Rose, who worked at a beauty shop, looking to relocated to a barber shop.  After all they were barbers, not cosmetologists.
      When they saw the shop they fell in love with it, so he made a deal with them - "Come work here, and when I retire I'll  sell you the shop".  They had no problem getting their clientele to follow them, nor picking up new customers.  Roy was even encouraging his customers to get their hair cut by one of them when he was not there.  This helped the ladies, and his customers would not have to go looking for a new barber when he retired.  Which was coming soon.
      Roy told Doris and Rose, "the Taylor children would be coming for summer hair cuts, and they were to get crewcuts - no ifs, ands, nor buts from them".  But, he forgot, in his rush to get out the shop on time, to tell Rose one of them was Mary - and she was to get a nice short Bob cut, kind of high in the back.
      About half an hour had gone by, when Rose, who had just finished cutting a customer's hair, told Doris she was going to take a quick run to the store for a soft drink and asked if she wanted anything.  Doris told her 'no', and reminded her the Taylor children would be arriving soon.  Rose said she would be back in time to cut one of them.
      It was a few minutes after Rose left when the Taylor's arrived, and Doris was finishing her customer.
      "Be with you in a minute", she told them as they began looking through the book rack.
      Unknown to Doris, and Rose for that, the youngest one was Mary, but because she was wearing blue-jean and a pull-over shirt, with tennis shoes, she looked like her brothers.  The only difference was her hair was longer than theirs.  As they sat waiting their turn Mary decided she wanted to sit in the barber's chair like she always did.  Doris noticed her climbing in Rose's chair, and told her "You'll have to wait a few minutes for Rose to come back".
      Mary smiled, shook her head that she understood, and went back reading her comic book.
      Doris called for the first Taylor boy, Ken - who was 16, to sat in the chair.  As she ran her fingers through his hair she commented, "Crewcut .....".  Ken knotted his head in agreement, but then again he didn't have a choice.
      It took her about fifteen minutes to cut his hair and he was stepping out the chair and his brother, Ron - who was 15, was climbing in.  Again she commented "Crewcut .....".  He too knotted his head in agreement.
      Just as she start cutting his hair Rose came into the shop.  "Yours' is waiting for you", she told her, pointing to Mary, who was sitting in her chair already.
      Rose said "hi" and tossed the cape across the chair.  She wrapped a tissue strip around her neck and pulled the cape into place.  Without saying a word Rose grabbed the clippers and begin to oil the blades.  The sound of the 'humming' clippers didn't catch Mary's attention, nor her bothers.
      "Better tuck the book under the cape a few minutes", Rose said, as she placed her left hand on top of Mary's head and tilted it forward.  Mary responded and sat waiting for her hair to be cut.
      It was then her brother, Ken, noticed Rose had the clippers.  Before he could say a word, or move a muscle, Rose began moving the clippers up the back of Mary's neck and head.  Tossing a large amount of hair away from her head with the flick of her wrist.
      Mary, who for years had taunted her brothers about having to get a crewcut every summer, sat not saying a word as Rose began another pass up the back of her neck and head.  Again she tossed the hair when she pulled the clippers away.  Ken, sat watching his eyes wide open and mouth opened a little, started to say something, but Mary pulled her left hand from under the cape and waived him to keep his mouth shut.
      Unknown to him, his brother and parents, Mary had always envied them when the summer came.  They always got their hair cut real short, and she had to settle for a short bob, which hung in her eyes when she tilted her head down.  She had dreamed for the day when she would be able to get a crewcut, and now, for whatever reason, her dream was coming through.
      Ken, looked at the look she was giving him, and just sat back and went back to reading his comic book.  When Ron stepped out the chair he noticed Mary's hair was clipped on the left side and back, as Rose was clippering the right side.  He turned to Ken, who just looked at him and shook his head "no".
      As he walked to sit next to Ken, he watch as Rose placed the clippers on the top of his sisters head and begin pushing it back.  He turned his head to Ken, and Ken whispered to him, "Let her go - I tried to say something but she gave me them 'eyes'".
      Ron, looked back at the chair as Rose was walking around the back to the chair to the left side, to finish clipping the top of his sister's head.  He, too, just went about reading his comic book.
      Clippers finished, for now, Rose begin dusting hair off Mary's face, and commented, "Know ..... you would look better with a shorter cut than your brothers".
       Mary looked at herself in the mirror, behind where the customers sat.
       "What do  you say", Rose asked.  "Shorter ....."!
       Mary looked at her brothers, who looked up, then tucked their heads back in to their comic books.  Mary turned her head to Rose and shook her head "yes".  She dare not speak a work, or Rose would know right off she was a girl - not a boy as she thought.
       Rose walked back to the shelf and changed the head of the clippers.  "Number three ..... no number two", Rose said as she pushed the head on.  She oiled the blade and turned to the chair.  She placed her left hand on top of Mary's head and tilted it forward.  The "popping" sound the clippers made caught Mary off guard and she jumped a little.
       Rose placed the clippers at the hair line and began an upward pass.  Is was followed by pass after pass cutting Mary's hair shorter, then her brothers.  When she begin passing the clippers over the top of Mary's head - Mary realized how short her hair was being cut to.  Her eyes grew wide as she had not thought of cutting her hair this short.  But, it was too late, she had told Rose it was "all right".
       When she was finished Rose turned off the clippers and removed the head, and took another one from her jacket pocket.  When she returned the clippers to live she tilted Mary's head to the left and began clipping the right side of her head.  Mary could hardly see any hair as the clippers moved backwards over her ear and to her neck.  She begin feeling the cool air from the air conditioner as Rose begin clipping the left side of her head.
      "There", Rose said as she turned the clippers off.  Taking her hair duster she began dusting small clippings from Mary's face.  She placed her left fingers under Mary's chin and moved her head toward her.  She looked the clipping over to make sure she had an even cut.  She smiled when she was sure she had done a great job.  The clippers were hung on the hook under the shelf.
       A sound of wood on wood sounded in the shop, and the boys looked up to see Rose removing a large white towel from the cabinet.  They looked at each other and smiled, Ron leaned over to Ken and whispered - "She wants a crewcut .....".  Holding a hand to cover their mouth, they both begin to laugh softly to themselves.
      Mary looked at them questionable when she felt the cape slide down the front of herself.  Then, she realized what they were up to when Rose begin tucking the towel in the collar of her shirt.  Her head quickly turned forward to see Rose standing by the shelf.  Her left hand was under a silver object and her right hand was pushing down on it.  It begin to "wind" as something white begin to come out.
      As the pile grew Mary mind told her what it was ..... SHAVING CREAM.
      She watched Rose turned and begin spreading the shaving cream along her hair line.  First she lather the right side, then the left.  She felt Rose spread the shaving cream across her neck, but higher than she had seen Mr. Roy spread it on her brother's neck.
      Rose wiped the excess cream from her hand and picked up her straight razor.  She walked to the right side of the chair and took hold of the leather strap.  Pulling it tight with her left hand she begin stropping the open razor's blade.  Mary's eyes followed the razor's movement - up-down-up-down - to the sound it made as it moved over the strap.  Rose stopped and looked at the edge of the blade.  She scrapped it across her lower part of her left arm.
      With the blade sharp as she wanted it, Rose begin trim shaving Mary's crewcut.  Each stroke was very short and quick, with the edge of the blade being wiped clean after ever few strokes.
      Rose shaved the right side, then the left side;  then, she tilted Mary's head forward and begin shaving across, in a straight line, her neck.  Mary knew she was shaving higher up her neck, than the boys got.  But, she did not mind.
      When she was finished, Rose put  the razor in the cabinet and wiped the excess shaving cream from the hairline.  She shook some powder on the hair duster and dusted around Mary's crewcut and across her face.  The cape was removed and Mary brush her fingers over her face then her head.  She smiled as she felt how soft and nice it felt.  Her dream had come true ..... before it's time.
      She stepped from the chair and walked to the mirror, and felt her head again.  Ron walked up to her and ran his fingers over her head, she smiled.  Ken paid for the hair cuts, then walked up behind Mary and ran his fingers over her head.  He whispered in her ear, "We weren't here when you got your hair cut.  We had walked over to the park to wait for you".
      Mary turned and smiled at him, "O.K.".
      They turned and walked out the shop, as both, Doris and Rose, told them to come again.
      They turned and waived to them, and Mary could not resist but to say, "Thank you for the crewcuts"!
      When they heard her soft feminine voice they looked at each other!
 

 

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