Imagine it's 1940. You're walking down the street, running errands. You roll up your sleeves to carry your groceries and all of a sudden people look at you in horror or disgust and turn up their noses.

You think to yourself: What just happened? Do I have something on my face?

You look down and remember the tattoo on your forearm and instantly understand the upturned noses.

Back in the early-to-mid 1900s, having a tattoo meant one of two things: you were either in the army or you were a pirate. You were considered dirty, rebellious and incongruent with sophisticated society members.

Today? According to Fox News, one in every five people has at least one tattoo. According to Tattoo Connection, in 2013 about 45 million Americans have at least one tattoo.

From Army vets to radical hipsters to soccer moms in suburbia — tattoos are on the 21st-century rise. What's changed?

In my opinion, I think that the millennial generation is hell-bent on being the opposite of the generation that raised us. We're determined to be expressive, vulnerable and honest with our lives and tattoos are an avenue of showcasing our generational differences.

My cousin, who has several tattoos, is a waitress and recently got into a conversation with the bartender at the restaurant they work at. The bartender didn't notice her tattoos until several weeks into her employment. She rolled up her sleeves one day and the bartender said,

"No pretty girl has tattoos like that and isn't damaged in some way."

I have a Public Service Announcement for everyone of all ages, this generation and the last.

Tattoos, in no way, mean someone is damaged or dirty.

If you don't have a tattoo, I'm not saying you have your nose in the air or aren't expressive. Everyone is different. That's the beauty of life and individuality. Some people get random tattoos just because they wanted them, other times there's a sincere meaning behind the ink on their skin.

"A drop of ink may make a million think" -Lord Byron

I like to think that this quote is interchangeable between writing and tattoos. Tattoos can serve as a conversation-starter and you might be surprised by the answers people give you. Tattoos are part of people's stories and there's nothing wrong with that.

Tattoos don't take away from a person. That's like saying paint on a canvas takes away from the canvas. When in reality the canvas was totally chill without the paint and is totally chill with the paint.

I know people with tattoos and people without them. Regardless of the ink or lack of ink, a person's value never changes. They are still who they were before and still worthy of acceptance and love.

That seemingly intimidating dude who looks like the Hulk and is covered in tattoos? Yeah, he wants to be loved like everyone else. What I'm trying to get at is this: people with tattoos shouldn't be written off for the pure fact they have tattoos.

I have three tattoos and am getting a new one tomorrow. Each one represents a different time in my life when I learned something about myself. For me, tattoos are an expression of growth where I learned a life lesson that I will hold on to forever.

One of my favorite quotes right now is from research professor, Brene Brown.

"Owning our story and loving ourselves through that process is the bravest thing we'll ever do."

For some, having a tattoo is like wearing their story on their skin for all to see. That's pretty brave.