The Sweet Smell of ........Scissors

Originally written September 8, 2002

Our society has come a long way in the last two hundred years of existence. Industrial and Technological revolutions have made nearly every thing easy and inexpensive to obtain. These days we have so much stuff, we can't even find it all.

When I was a child visiting my maternal grandmother, I loved hearing the stories in the book, Pages From the Book of Eve by Ora Pate Stewart. It told of the struggles and joys of a turn of the century western farm family. One of my favorite chapters was the day they lost the scissors.

The family had one pair of scissors, and the mother couldn't remember where she'd put them. Relating the tale is a young girl who is the central character in the book. She carefully reconstructs her mother's movements since the last sighting of the shears and recovers the scissors, earning a pack of gum as a reward.

As a girl I loved that story for the triumph of a young mind. Now I love it for its simplicity. Imagine their lack of stuff! Imagine only one pair of scissors...

I own at least 20. I have kitchen shears - multiple pairs, paper scissors in both adult and kids sizes - multiple pairs, and my husband often carries a pair around in his soft sided briefcase. Me too, in various bags. For crafting, sewing, and scrap booking, I count eight pairs: two pairs of sewing shears - one for cutting man made fibers and one for natural fibers, a pair of pinking shears for fabric and 5 other various decorative scissors for paper scalloping and pinking. Plus I have three or four little scissors or clippers for trimming threads. And I have rotary cutters for fabric and paper.

Then there are scissors for haircuts, and a small pair for nail and nose hair trimming, a pair for baby nail trimming, several more pair for trimming rope or other outdoorsy things, that fold up compactly, and finally "the ugly step sister" pair of paper scissors that can't really cut anything anymore, but that I can't throw away.

If success were measured by scissor possession, I'd be rich. And yet, I generally can't find any of the scissors when I need them. I blame it all on my children. Before they came along, I had places for my scissors and for the most part they stayed in those designated places. Oh sure, I'd sometimes leave a pair with a project and have to hunt them down, and return them to their spot, but it wasn't a major problem.

Once I had children, specifically my project loving daughter; my scissors became permanently lost.

It all began one day when she was about 16 months old. I found her sitting at my sewing table happily cutting up a scrap of fabric and the maroon knit pants she was still wearing! Thankfully she didn't cut her cute little self. But after that scary scene, the scissors were put up high, and thus began the great quest for scissors. I put scissors up high on the refrigerator or high in the cupboards and closets, and I could never find them again.

I couldn't, but she could.

Not only was she gifted artistically with a desire to draw on paper, craft with any odd bit of paraphernalia lying around the house; she also possessed a gene for climbing.

Another heart stopping day, I found her climbing on the four inches of counter in front of the microwave retrieving the scissors "hidden" high atop the cupboard shelf above. After that no matter where we hid the scissors, She tracked them down. My husband swore she sniffed them out like a hound dog hunting down a missing person.

Next she put them to use cutting up every piece of scrap paper, and trimming doll hair, and finally her hair. She claimed she needed to cut the paper to make it pretty. She claimed she needed to cut the hair because it was "pokey". We talked about how she should ask to use scissors. We talked about how she should only cut the paper in the art project drawer. We talked about how only Mommy or Hair Dresser Tracy should trim hair. We talked ourselves blue. She knew all the right answers. She didn't apply any of them.

On about the fourth self "trim", I lost patience and really trimmed her hair. It was somewhat necessary. She'd gotten a little more drastic with her snipping and had several noticeably short spots. She got a hair cut similar to the styles sported by her brothers. It was short. I hoped that the shock would curtail her cutting.

For the most part it did as far as hair is concerned. After that point, she said she wants her hair to grow long agin. I haven't noticed evidence of her haircuts anywhere, but she still is finding scissors and cutting up her art projects. I figure at least she'll be able to find a pair of scissors for me. And if she starts losing interest in smelling them out, I can always offer a reward but not gum. She swallows that.

Update February 9, 2013

No more hair "trimming" occurred in the last eleven years. Art project "trimming" is still apparent all over the floors. Mostly in her room however. She has mastered gum chewing, but has lost the ability to remember where she put the scissors most of the time. But that is okay, since she is also quite good at tearing up the art projects for scattering around like confetti.

She also has a monthly appointment with Hair Dresser Tracy to keep her fancy locks in shape. She decided to go short for eighth grade because everyone needs to try short hair once or twice, although she is now growing it out before high school...