A Father’s Solution
He looked at his daughter and shook his head. She had beautiful long long hair but he had to do it. He reached out with a heavy heart and picked up the clippers before approaching her and shaving all her hair off.
He hated doing and she was furious. Her eyes stung with tears at the thought that she looked like a boy. He knew she hated the crew cut but he had no other option. Or so he thought.
Change
Philip Pieri and his 11-year-old daughter lived together in Utah. He had to leave for work early every day which meant that he had to trust that Isabella would get herself ready and get to the bus on time.
So far he never had an issue with Isabella making it to the bus together. He didn’t think too much of it the day the first slip appeared in her school bag, but when she brought home two more slips in the next two weeks he became concerned.
Happy Family
Isabella grew up in a very happy and loving home and she spent her early years as a very happy child. While they didn’t have a lot of money, Philip always made sure that they had all they needed.
Patricia, his wife, had always told him that they would get by. However, life had some nasty surprises in store.
Adjustment
Patricia was diagnosed with a terminal condition when Isabella was only three years old. Sadly, Patricia passed away six years later and the loss of his wife was devastating to Philip. However, he refused to give up and was determined to give Isabella the best he could.
However, due to the nature of his work, Isabella didn’t have anyone to take her to school or get her ready in the mornings.
Oversight
Without a mother Isabella grew more and more independent. She would wake up extra early in the mornings and get herself ready for school. Once she was ready she would go to the bus stop to get to school.
It wasn’t the easiest arrangement but it worked. Soon two years had flown past. However, since he didn’t have the know-how or the time, Philip didn’t realize that he had overlooked something very important.
Clamming Up
One day, Isabella started to get warnings about her being late for school every day. When he found out he sat down one evening and tried to get to the bottom of it. However, Isabella wouldn’t answer him, instead clamming up and changing the subject.
Isabella didn’t want to hurt Philip’s feelings. However, her behaviour just made him more suspicious.
Followed
Philip knew he had to get to the bottom of it so he asked to leave work early one day. He drove to his daughter’s school and waited for her to come out. He waited and wondered if she really was taking the bus.
However, he soon saw his daughter come out of school and immediately got on the bus along with some of her friends. He followed the bus the whole way and soon they were home. That’s when he noticed something strange.
Changing Behavior
Philip was no fool and he knew that things weren’t easy for Isabella at this time. Once his wife had passed away Isabella had never really been quite the same. After all, she was only 9 when her mother died.
However, lately there had been quite a change in Isabella’s behavior. Even so, Philip knew that he needed to find out exactly what was going on.
Revelation
The following evening, Philip sat Isabella down again. He broached the subject gently, first by asking if Isabella was having trouble sleeping at night. Was this why she had been late for school last week? Was she oversleeping? Isabella shook her head.
But when he finally confronted her about the bus driver, he saw her eyes widen in surprise.
The Truth Comes Out
Philip asked Isabella why the bus driver was keeping her on the bus longer than the other kids. Was that why she been late for school every day? Then, Isabella opened up and told him everything.
The bus driver had been keeping her on the bus in the morning and evening — even after all the other children had gotten off. Philip was dumbfounded when she admitted that it was because of her hair. Was he in trouble?
A Big Problem
After her mom passed, Isabella had struggled with her hair every morning. This revelation was no surprise to her dad — he was well-aware of the problem.
In fact, Isabella and her dad had come to blows over her hair more than once. In the end, the desperate dad felt he had to resort to drastic measures to keep it in check.
Drastic Measures
Philip tried his best to untangle Isabella’s hair, but he just didn’t know how. “She’d get mad at me for pulling her hair. I didn’t know how to do it,” he admitted in an interview. That’s when he knew that he was out of options.
He grabbed the clippers he used to keep his own hair trimmed and shaved it all off.
All Gone
After inspecting her shorn head in the mirror, Isabella was horrified when she saw what he had done. But she didn’t want to upset her dad. She knew he was trying his best.
It took two years to grow out again. When her dad suggested shaving it, Isabella refused. Then, they agreed on a compromise.
A Good Chop
Instead of shaving Isabella’s head again, Philip took out a pair of scissors and cut half of the length off. But this didn’t solve the issue, and soon Isabella’s hair was matted and unkempt again.
She had no choice but to tie it up to try to hide it, until the day that the bus driver noticed…
She Noticed
Tracy Dean loved her job, and she loved children. When she saw that Isabella was struggling, she knew she had to step in. She saw that Isabella’s hair had been cut the night before and suspected that her dad had no idea how to style it.
She asked her to stay behind on the bus and whipped out a hairstyling kit from her handbag.
A Morning Routine
Soon, Isabella and Tracy’s hairstyling sessions became routine. Tracy would comb Isabella’s hair out every morning and plait it into a French braid.
“I could tell she was struggling with her hair. We usually do two French braids first and once in a while she just wants one braid,” Tracy admitted in an interview. But why did she do it?
Making Progress
At first, it was slow-going. It took a full week of 10-minute sessions for Tracy to slowly untangle Isabella’s hair. She had been slightly late for school on those days, but Tracy knew it was important.
She has four children at home — one who is almost Isabella’s age. But when Isabella began to open up about her mom, Tracy couldn’t hold back.
A Connection
When Tracy heard about Isabella’s mom, she started to cry. Isabella was confused. But then Tracy revealed something about her past.
She herself had had cancer, just like Isabella’s mom. She knew she was lucky to have pulled through and was grateful that she could still be there for her children.
Being There For Her
“I didn’t just survive for my husband or my children. I survived for these kids on the bus that need somebody to talk to or do their hair or whatever,” Tracy explained in an interview.
“I also taught (Isabella) how to brush her hair. She’d get on the bus and she’d say, ‘I brushed my hair. Does it look good? I’ll say, ‘You did awesome.’”
His Little Princess
Naturally, when Philip found out about Tracy and Isabella’s morning routine, he was dumbfounded. Isabella didn’t want to hurt his feelings at first — after all, he had tried his best to untangle her hair.
But Philip is only grateful to Tracy. “One day [Isabella] came home and it looked beautiful. I call her my princess and she looks the part, she plays the part and her confidence is way up, which is what I’ve been intending,” Philip said.
A Hero
Soon, the media caught wind of the heartwarming story and Tracy was hailed a hero, but she remains humble.
“It’s just the way my mom raised me, to be nice to everyone—people who need a little love in their life. I like to give all of the kids a chance—even the naughty kids,” she said.