My tattoos are a road map of the person I have been.
For anybody that knows me really well, they already know I’m covered in ink. For the rest of the world… well, surprise!
For my first tattoo, my best friend and I decided to get matching crosses to signify our bond with each other and our faith in Christ. As my family and friends warned me to think it through carefully, I told myself “I am always going to be a Christian. There’s no way I could ever regret this.”
Three years later, I am a different person; and no, I don’t still consider myself a Christian. My beliefs have changed dramatically, and I couldn’t have foreseen that. But this begs the question: do I regret my tattoo? Of course not. Just because I’m no longer a Christian doesn’t mean I wish I wouldn’t have gotten it. Being a Christian was an integral part of my identity for most of my life, and made me the person I am today… and I am proud of the person I am today, which is all the more reason for me to display my tattoo.
My tattoos are an opportunity for me to give someone a deeper look into who I am.
My body is sacred, and revealing something that is hidden to the rest of the world is one of the most personal gifts I can give. When I show someone my tattoos I feel as if I’m peeling back another layer and letting someone get to know me because each tattoo has a very specific and important meaning to me.
My tattoos are art.
Have you ever made something with your own two hands and felt the immense pride and excitement that comes with creating something unique, knowing that there’s nothing in the world like it? Each of my tattoos is a beautiful piece of art, some of which I drew myself. And yes, they might be an acquired taste…but they’re worthy of being admired by the right people.
Tattoos are becoming more widely accepted.
All those statistics your conservative aunt showed you about tattoos not being accepted in the workplace? A majority of these negative opinions are coming from baby boomers who I can promise you are slowly but surely retiring, and making way for a more tattoo tolerant workforce. Like it or not, Millennials and Gen Zs will be running the world. Select companies are even going out of their way to hire people with tattoos because it appeals to the millennial demographic.
My tattoos are well thought out.
My tattoos will never be a reflection of immaturity or poor judgment. As I said, they are each a road map of the person I have been, who I am now, and who I want to be someday. They each represent a very important belief, a person, or a memory, and they’re all things I’m proud to have on my body forever.
And you know what? Even if I had a tattoo that didn’t signify something important, and I just thought it was beautiful, that’s okay too because it’s my body and I’ll decorate it how I damn well please.
Not to mention, they’re BAD ASS.
