I have always thought that beards were really cool looking. When I was younger, I always wished that I would be able to grow a big awesome beard. But then I joined the military and wasn't allowed to grow any type of facial hair.
I spent 10 years in the military shaving my face every single day. Whenever I went on leave or had a long weekend, I would let my facial hair grow out because I hated shaving. That would only last a few days and then I was back to shaving my face every single day. It sucked.
Then when I got out of the military, I became a police officer and I still wasn't able to grow a beard. Then we moved to Utah and I started working at the prison and once we graduated our training, we were allowed to grow our facial hair out. While I was working at the prison, I let it grow out, but I had no clue how to take care of it, so I kept it pretty short. When it was longer, it was going all over the place.
Then once, I officially retired and started living life on my own terms, I decided to give growing a long beard another try. I learned what oils and balms to use and how to keep it under control. Now I have a pretty long and thick beard that I get compliments on whenever I go out.
I know how much work goes into having a beard. It is cool to take pictures of people with beards because they always seem to have a timeless feel. I am hoping to find some beard competitions or events where people with beards of all styles meet up. It would be so cool to attend and get pictures of everyone's beards. I would hate if I still had a smooth face and weren't able to grow a beard. Real men have beards.
