Let's talk about tattoos. Most people either have them, want one but can't commit to something so permanent, or they are completely against them. Well I am here to tell you why I got my tattoos and why I refuse to let people define who I am because of them.
When I turned 16 years old, the only thing that I wanted to do was to get my first tattoo. My sister was finishing up leukemia treatments, and I wanted to honor her strength in an important way. I drew the design all on my own, printed it out and put it on my dresser so I saw it every day. It was my 18th birthday when I made sure that this was the design I wanted. So I got this tattoo:
The tattoo had the day that my sister was diagnosed and the phrase, "The day that I met my hero." It was one of the greatest days of my life, knowing that I had something so meaningful etched into my skin forever.
From then on, I was a viewed differently. I got weird stares and rude comments when I went out and it was visible.
"Girls and women shouldn't have tattoos. It's trashy."
So, you mean to tell me that my tattoo honoring my little sister is seen as trashy simply because I am a woman?
"You know that's permanent, right?"
And yes, tattoos are permanent; that is the entire reason why I got it.
They say that after you get your first tattoo, either you are done with them for the rest of your life or you will want more. Well for me, I wanted more. My next tattoo came about a month later, and then I got another one about three months after that, and then I finally got my last one the following year. All of my tattoos have meanings behind them: my faith and my beliefs, my sister and my dad. Just as an artist paints on a canvas, a tattoo artist painted art on my skin. It just so happens that mine is permanent.
One good thing I can say is that tattoos are becoming more popular with the millennial generation. If you are around the age of 20, you are almost expected to have at least one tattoo. Tattoos are becoming more commonly seen on the streets and even in the workplace. It is starting to make this issue much less of an issue. However, when you have "older" people as your boss and co-workers, showing off your lovely art can be seen as deviant and offensive. What these individuals fail to realize is my tattoos are a sign of commitment. I committed to having ink under my skin forever. If that's not commitment, I don't know what is.
Being a woman with tattoos has truly opened my eyes to the way that the world judges people and how much of a double standard there is for men and women. But I know the meanings of my tattoos, and I choose to not let people define me because of them.
