Holes in My Head
A few months ago, Bart and I were talking about various milestones for our future children and I asked him what he wanted to do about our daughters getting their ears pierced.
I had my ears pierced when I was nine. I remember being aware that my Dad wasn’t very thrilled about the whole thing. His mom has never pierced her ears (she has a extensive collection of clip-on earrings) and his sisters didn’t either (although, one did when she was in her 40s and, when my mom commented on it, said that her dad still didn’t know). So, for my Dad, it seemed right not to have any piercing going on.
Fortunately for me, he couldn’t very well say “no” since my Mom had her ears pierced (and every intention of keeping them like that). So he decided that, if piercing was inevitable, he would at least use it as leverage to get us to do something he wanted us to do. He struck a deal with us – when we learned our multiplication tables up to 15 x 15 and could do two sets of 100 in less than 10 minutes and get at least 95% correct, we could get our ears pierced.
I’m the kind of kid (and adult, really) who likes a challenge. I think I learned mine in just a few weeks. (And I still know almost all of them off the top of my head). I clearly remember how excited I was to go to Claires, pick out my studs (little stars with diamonds in them). I remember carefully cleaning them every night and twisting them twice daily to keep them from getting stuck (yuck!). I was so thrilled.
When I asked Bart about what condition he might want to impose on our children, he got a strange look on his face. “I’ve never really thought about it, but I’ve just realized I’m pretty deeply opposed to letting our kids get their ears pierced.” What?
Bart’s mom doesn’t have her ears pierced (she also wears clip-on earrings occasionally) and I don’t know about his three sisters (although I’d guess they all do), so I can see why Bart is naturally disinclined.
But I love my pierced ears. I wear earrings almost every day. I loathe clip-on earrings because they hurt my ears. I don’t think one set of holes is in any way tacky or weird or gross. I can’t imagine letting them grow in – I like them too much. And Bart had never said a word about my pierced ears (although he has, on occasion, commented that he likes a particular pair of earrings).
And so, because Bart is in the same boat as my Dad, I’m sure we’ll let our girls pierce their ears. I want them to pierce their ears if they want to – it’s just a fun perk of being a girl, if you are so inclined.
Now we just have to think up an appropriate payment for the privilege.
Are your ears pierced? Do you feel strongly one way or the other? And what about your significant other?
I got my “holes in my head” when I was 12. I picked out my birthstone, Peridot, for my earing of choice. Three weeks later, I pulled them out and replaced them with a “much prettier” set of earings. I thought my mom wouldn’t notice. The next day I woke up and there was no earing in my right ear. I started to freak and figured it had fallen out in bed. It hadn’t. I felt behind my ear and the back was still there. The head to this stud was tiny and had somehow gotten pushed back into my ear and over night my skin had healed up over the front of the earring. (I’ve always been a quick healer.) So my plan for my mom not to notice this change was thwarted. She rushed me to the doctor where he announced “we must prepare for minor surgery to get my earing out”. I think he did that to freak me out. Well, it worked and I didn’t wear earings again till I was 24.
So based on my daughter’s maturity and making sure their studs wil be present for the full six weeks will determine when they get their ears pierced.
Sorry, that was kinda long. 🙁
I did grow up in California, both the LA area and the San Francisco bay area, so there was a lot more minority representation. But I might just be nuts…
My mom does not have her ears pierced and never intends to, so I was told I couldn’t get mine pierced until I moved out of the house! When I was eleven, my dad gave me a little box full of earrings for pierced ears as a Christmas gift (I don’t think my mom approved) and said that I could get them done. I waited until I turned 12 in March to get them pierced. I remember being really excited to finally be able to change the earrings but when the time actually came, it was really gross for me to think that the post went through my earlobe. It is still gross to me if I think about it much.
Aaron and I have never talked about when our girls can have their ears pierced (if we even have girls….he would be happy with all boys). His mom had hers pierced the year that he and I were engaged and he doesn’t have any sisters.
What a great idea to earn those pierced ears (just one set, though!) I agree with those who have said the kid should be older so she can take care of her ears herself. And I don’t think infants should have theirs done (even though Bethany has a valid point!). I know there are a lot of parents who get their daughter’s ears pierced as an infant and I am so glad that many pediatric offices now offer this service to ensure it is done correctly.
Whao so many comments. It is a cultural thing I’ve learned. I up until my informative years thought it was absolutely natural to pierce a baby ears ( as in circumcison with boys).
Some people in the American culture do not pierce their ears until they are much older. It’s just interesting to read how many people are offended by other cultures. I think the difference in views are interesting and we can learn quite a lot from it.
I love having pierced ears. I had them done when I was about 30 – twenty some years ago.
My daughter’s ears were pierced when she was in 1st or 2nd grade. No matter how careful we were, they still became infected. We waited a couple of years and with the doctor’s blessing had them done again. She’s 21 and still wears different earrings every day.
My advice is to use your own judgement on how mature and responsible your child is along with your own feelings, religious, and/or moral beliefs.
Bronwen, Megan, Ashley, and I (Bart’s sisters) all have our ears pierced.
My Mom said I couldn’t have them pierced until I was twelve, but I begged and begged and she let me get them pierced in first or second grade. I had a second set of holes pierced at some point in high school, but let them close up when they became infected.
Bron had multiple holes on both ears and a nose ring in high school, she pierced several of them,
including the nose ring, herself. Currently I only ever notice one set in her ears.
Meg had multiple holes as well, but now I think she only uses one set.
Ashley had her tongue pierced for a time. I thought that just looked painful. I haven’t seen her in awhile, so I don’t know her current status.
Anyway, that is the history of Bart’s sisters piercing as far as I know it.