How Green Becomes Wood

"Cool, okay." Milo replied, making the finished print of the first wagon photograph. When it was ready, he held it out and grinned before turning it around and show Xander. Honestly, it looked almost identical to the last one he had shown, but to his eyes, he much preferred how the colours came out. "There. I'm going to scan these when I get home and put them on a flashdrive, too, so your family can print however many they want of all of the pictures in their own time. That's probably easier, I think."
 
"I dunno. I think I kinda look like Shaggy from Scooby-Doo, and he's got a little stubble on his chin, I guess. And he's from the 60s or 70s, right? And like, beards were a big anti-establishment thing then, beards and long hair. I have kinda floppy hair, because I've never known what to do with it, it makes me think of, you know, the Beatles, a little bit. Just combine everything and then I look like I dodged the draft." He shrugged, "Anyway my facial hair grows in red which is weird."
 
"I don't really think of him as having a full beard, though, he's just kinda got scraggles," Milo replied with a shrug, "I think it's weirdly common for guys with brown hair to grow red beards. I don't really like it, but I think I'd look weird if I grew one. I've never even really tried. Do you think about growing a beard a lot?"
 
Xander struggled to picture the fictional character. He remembered the basic outline and stuff, but he couldn't picture him in detail, not having actually looked in years. At Milo's question, he gave him a flat look and pointed to his chin where five brave strands stuck out, each standing alone and very socially distanced from the others. "I haven't shaved in three weeks, and I live with a guy who has to wax regularly to avoid turning into a bush overnight."
 
"Oh," Milo replied, valiantly trying not to laugh at his friend's distress, "It's probably less maintenance for you though, right? Grass is always greener on the other side and all that? Maybe when we get older it'll grow more."
 
"Maybe," Xander said doubtfully. "Tristan, Mr. Walsh, my uncle that owns the flower shop, he has like a baby face. I guess I could ask if he shaves or is naturally bald. Huh. That'll be a fun conversation."
 
"I don't think my dad grew a good beard," Milo said, thinking about it, and handed. Xander another one of the prints. This one was a picture of Ivy and all of Daizi's favourite aunts and it looked sort of like if someone went out of their way to illustrate what being smothered with love looked like. "Maybe he could, but he never did. He said it was itchy. But I guess it's better to have a baby face, you know? Because it means you won't look old until you're really old."
 
Xander held up the print and looked at it. "It looks like the absolute shining lighthouse of love and my worst nightmare," he frowned. "The aunts are going to go feral over this one. Nice job." He set it very carefully aside. "Fair. I bet if I could grow a beard, though, I could pass as twenty-something. What do you think?"
 
"Maybe," Milo shrugged, "I dunno. I'm really bad at guessing how old people are. But I think generally people guess someone with a beard is older than someone without one." He looked at Xander, "What do you think your dad looks like without a beard?"
 
"Maybe he actually has a weak jawline," Milo teased, "That's why a lot of guys grow them, right? 'Cause it makes them look like they have a sharper jaw than they actually do. Maybe it's all a ruse. I don't know if I could grow a real beard anyway. I've never really tried."
 
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Xander snickered. "Man, that'd be hilarious if that was true, but every version and variation of hell would freeze over or catch on fire before he'd ever even think about touching that thing. It's like one of his kids."
 
"No, it's a bible story. There's was this boy named Samson, and God told his parents never to let him cut his hair, because his hair made him strong. Basically. And it's a bible story, so he always has trouble with the Philistines, they're basically at war all the time or something, and he ends up marrying this woman named Delilah, who is a Philistine, and she wants to find out the source of his power so she could defeat him. Eventually he tells her, and that night she cuts his hair and he's able to be imprisoned by being chained to these columns, right? And he's tortured or whatever, but he prays to God who gives him the strength needed to pull the columns down, even shorn, killing the people who trapped him, and maybe also himself?" Milo shrugged, "I don't remember, exactly. I think at some point Samson also killed a bunch of people because they beat him in a bet and he was a sore loser about it. The idea is Delilah is evil, Samson is good, his hair made him powerful. Although I feel like if the Philistines wrote the story, Delilah would be a hero in their version."
 
Xander's mouth moved slightly as he tried to sort through all of what Milo just said. "That is one weird story," he finally said. "Bible stories are really weird. But I get your point. Maybe his power is hidden in his beard. Maybe that's why he hasn't shaved it yet even though his baby shoves like half her dinner in his beard whenever she can."
 
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