"What if you regret it?"

That is probably the most common thing that will come out of any parents mouth once asked the dreaded question, "Can I get a tattoo?"

Only, I knew my parents' answer to that question before even asking, so I skipped it entirely, did the deed, and confessed it to my mom over Instagram.

- BAD IDEA GUYS -

There could have been a better way for me to go about the entire situation...

Like maybe using a little reverse psychology? Ya know, put my parents in my place for once, so they know how it feels to get those typical responses.

So, here is my new strategy:

(Common questions flipped around on the parents:)

"Hey mom and dad, before you named me, did you ever stop to think that you might regret it?"

Well, I'm sure the answer to that is yes, for months parents debate about names. Same goes with tattoos - Obviously, we know that regret is a likely possibility, but that doesn't mean we should never get one. We are smart enough to think it over before randomly inking a permanent Hot Cheeto on our butt cheek, just as you would never name your kid Hugh Jass just for the fun of it.

"That's pretty permanent ain't it?"

Our names are stuck with us for the rest of our lives - and we don't even get a say in what it should be! (Here I am, sharing a name with the other 65 million 'Madison''s in the world.) A tattoo is unique and meaningful, as is (hopefully) your name, but things can change.

You look at your parents and you say to them -

"What if I didn't like my name?"

"What if my name becomes tacky when I'm older?"

"What if the name doesn't fit me so well anymore?"

Well, a name is who you are, whether you like it or not. Of course, it can be changed, legally, as a tattoo can potentially be removed by lasers, but neither of those options are very likely for most people.

However, names last longer than tattoos do.

Names go down in history.

My name is going to be planted on my headstone for the rest of the living world to remember, and I had absolutely no choice in what I wanted people to know me by.

Tattoos, at least, can be modified and/or added to.

Let's also talk about common statements:

"You can when you're older."

Well, my parents married young and had their first child when they were in their early twenties.

I, too, am in my early twenties and let me just say that if I am, 'not old enough,' or, 'not mature enough,' to get a tattoo, then they definitely should not have been growing an entire human being at that age either. (!!!)

The act of choosing a tattoo and choosing a name has a lot of similarities, only a tattoo doesn't come along with a human.

"You can't get rid of it."

Tattoos are wonderful because you can hide them if you want to. Get them in secret spots no one knows about, boast them, cover them with socks/clothes/hair, whatever you want. Like I said, my name will be posted on my headstone, but a tattoo comes with me to the grave, which then continues to be eaten off by bugs or rot away. So, technically, tattoos aren't that permanent.

And if that doesn't change your parents mind, I don't know what will.

Good luck!