“A gift is pure when it is given from the heart to the right person at the right time and at the right place, and when we expect nothing in return,” Willow Smith wrote on Instagram. She shared a photo of her mom, Jada Pinkett Smith’s shaved head with the inspiring caption this week. Pinkett Smith responded to her daughter, writing back: “Willow made me do it because it was time to let go BUT … my 50’s are bout to be Divinely lit with this shed.”

Although Pinkett Smith looks truly incredible for any age and stunning with a shaved head, she made the big chop for an emotional reason. In 2018, she opened up about her battle with alopecia on an episode of The Red Table Talk. She called her sudden hair loss “terrifying,” but felt she had to speak up as people were asking why she was wearing so many turbans.

Source: Instagram

“I’m been getting a lot of questions about why I’ve been wearing this turban,” she said. “Well, I’ve been having issues with hair loss. And I’m going to tell you, it was terrifying when it first started. And I’m going to tell you, I was in the shower one day and it just, handfuls of hair in my hands.” Both Pinkett Smith’s mom and Willow listen emotionally as she says she was “shaking with fear.”

She says it’s why she kept cutting her hair into cool, dramatic styles. “My hair has been a big part of me,” she continues. “Taking care of my hair has been a beautiful ritual and having the choice to have hair or not. But then one day I was like, I might not have a choice.”

Back in January 2020, Rep. Ayanna Pressley revealed her bald head in a powerful video about alopecia. There’s no doubt these honest conversations help many women at home dealing with the same condition.