Almost every person has thought about getting a tattoo whether they were 18 or 65. Tattoos as of today are apart of our society. They are all around us. Most likely you know one person with a tattoo. Individuals with tattoos have been looked down upon greatly in the past. Most of the time some will walk up to a person who has tattoos and say, "Why would you get that?" "What could that possibly mean to you."
What they don't understand is that we as individuals who are "inked" get tattoos for a reason ALWAYS. If its to remind us of where we came from, what to live by, who we loved, because we love, and so we don't forget to be good to one another. As a reminder that people can be mean to us, but it doesn't matter. So when people look at you and expect you to be a certain way just from your appearance show them something they didn't expect. Life is full of pain most of it we never asked for, but it just happened.
So when we chose to feel pain it's for a reason! Whether it took three months or three seconds to decide what we wanted, we went up to that counter and said, "I want this on my body." Everyone is free to express themselves if it involves art, music, or poetry. People with tattoos chose for their expression to be through body art instead. Yes, everyone is beautiful they way they are. And yes, to change someone is wrong. The only difference is that individuals with "ink" chose to make their body a work of art, a canvas, a piece of paper with life on endless possibilities to put on it.
Next time a someone walks up to you and ask why you "Have all of that on your body.","You do that to your body." Look at them and tell them YOUR reason. Don't just sit back and give them the same old excuse as you did every other time. No more silence, no more fear, no excuses! Its time for them to finally know why you chose to be a canvas for the world as well as yourself.
Explain that memory to them, let them know your adventure even if it was just one drunk night. Don't hind behind fabric and stitches just to try and please everyone else. You chose to have those tattoos so go out and show them. Most of the time the people asking why you got those tattoos is because their trying to understand. So take a deep breathe and try to help them understand. You never know they just might want to be a canvas too.
