“I pondered how I could align my appearance with my mother’s. As I ventured into primary school, I started to sense an increasing lack of belonging, not due to my cultural background but rather because of my race. My hair was short, yet I longed for braids and twists adorned with bows and beads. Some may perceive hair care as insignificant in parenting transracially adopted children, but believe me, it holds substantial significance. Hair care serves as a gauge for fostering positive self-esteem. When your skin colour stands out, and your body shape does not conform to the prevailing fashion trends, hair care becomes one of the many elements contributing to the self-image’s complexity. We all experience a bad hair day or haircut, but we contemplate the impact on self-esteem when such experiences become a daily occurrence for a school-aged child. Naturally, you yearn to blend in with your peers, a developmentally appropriate desire. However, everything you encounter emphasises your conspicuousness, but not in the way you desire. My parents needed to be fully equipped to address those challenges, and they needed to have the advantages of the knowledge and resources available to families in present times.”