The weather is getting colder, people are wearing thicker clothing, and Thanksgiving will be here before we know it. But the No-Shave November movement is also trending in full effect. No Shave November, NSN, is a month-long journey in which participants refrain from shaving or grooming to raise cancer awareness. There is only one major rule for this movement, which  is actually quite simple; it simply asks for one to put down the razor for 30 days and donate one’s monthly hair-maintenance expenses to the cause. Anyone can participate and set up his or her own personal fundraising page.

To be honest, when I first heard about NSN, I did not know what the movement was really about. I did my research and got pretty interested in it. I thought that this idea was wonderful because it was creative, and it prompted people to be lazy for a good cause. I decided to participate in the movement and share it with my grandpa, so we could both do it together.

Now, personally, I never really liked shaving. I could not really shave in the first place due to only having a very tiny amount of facial hair, or none. But then, I heard that there was this myth that shaving makes one’s hair grow faster; therefore,  I decided to test it out. I have only shaved once in my life, and I swore that I would never do it again. I was 13 at the time and wanted to try shaving after watching my grandpa do it with such ease. I clearly remember watching him bring the razor up to his cheekbone and straight down to his jawline. I saw him slowly work his way around his face until there was no shaving cream left. After he had finished, I got his supplies and began to try it on myself.

First, I applied some of his shaving cream to my face. I really did not know what to do, so I basically made myself a white mask and laughed when I looked in the mirror and saw that I resembled a snowman. After that, I picked up the razor and mimicked what my grandpa had just performed. Or “attempted” to mimic at least. Instead, I ended up starting too close to the side of my nose and brought it down to the corner of my lip where the blade got caught. I tried pulling it out, but nothing happened except more pain and more blood dripping down the side of my face.

Eventually, my mom heard me crying in pain. She took out the razor by cutting the skin that got caught in between the blades with a pair of scissors. My grandpa still laughs at me to this day and asks me if I shave, since I am 17 now. I still tell him the answer “no;” however, this year at Thanksgiving dinner, I am going to tell him I will not shave this month because it is “No-Shave November” month. Then, I will wait to see how he responds to that.

NSN has not only encouraged people to raise awareness for cancer, but it has also brought people together and form a bond over something we can all do. Just let it grow!