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My whole life I grew up thinking I would never get a tattoo. My mom was very against tattoos. After my dog Chopper passed away, as a family we decided to get tattoos to commemorate him. At this point, it seemed as though all our moral values about tattoos had dissipated. Now, it was all about honoring Chopper who had been diagnosed with lymphoma two years prior and suffered through countless needle pokes and infusions of chemotherapy. The least we could do was endure a few needle pokes to honor his name and legacy as the toughest dog in town. This week, I got my second tattoo. It's a little lightening bolt on the middle finger of my right hand. I just felt like I wanted to write a post about why I got this tattoo and why I think people shouldn't be discouraged by other people to get tattoos. I understand tattoos are permanent. I understand that I'm young. But, for me, my tattoos are memories, inspiration, and self-expression (like fashion!). I will always remember I got this lightening bolt the week of my 21st birthday. I decided to get tattoos on my hands which are more difficult to cover than arm tattoos or ankle tattoos because I wanted them to be a sort of promise to myself. A promise that I shouldn't care if other people judge me based on my tattoos. I shouldn't care what other people think (okay, I'll admit I asked my mom's approval first, but that's because I obviously trust her with my life and feel like she should have a say and I trust her and I do care what she thinks). I've struggled with this idea of caring about what other people think my whole life. My dad always told me you shouldn't care what other people think because you can't change what people think, regardless. I don't think tattoos are for everyone, and I understand that there is a religious factor for a lot of people; but, the truth of the matter is, it's your decision and who cares what other people think. I'm not trying to encourage anyone to get tattoos, just explain the meaning behind mine. Here's a couple pictures of my tattoos, I'd love to see some of yours too.

Shout out to Sara Lou at Incognito for the lightening bolt and Christian Cervantes at Spotlight Tattoo for Chopper.