Tattooed Mama

Dear Diary,

If you didn’t hear through the grapevine (me,) Diary of a First Time Mom made its national debut yesterday on My Brown Baby, a leading African-American Parenting site. I wrote an article on stretch marks  (a.k.a. mom tattoos.)  So, today, I decided to write about my real tattoos and why I got inked up for the love of my daughter.

When I graduated college, I decided to mark the milestone.  I called home to tell my mother, perhaps hoping she would convince me that it wasn’t a wise choice.  Surprisingly, she told me that I was grown and could do what I wanted.  (Unfortunately, that isn’t always her sentiment, even now that I’m 35 with a child of my own:)  I gathered a support group, and we headed to a Lansing tattoo shop.  An hour later, I walked away with an anchor, heart, and cross on the back of my shoulder, that meant faith, hope, and love.

As you may know, tattoos are addictive. Once you get one, you’ll get hooked and want another.  I just didn’t know of anything I would want inked into my skin for the rest of my life.  Then, I had Baby C and decided to get her name on the back of my neck (which was now covered by a long bob I grew over three trimesters.) Her name means Pure, but I couldn’t  set myself up for inappropriate jokes by all the men I would meet in the future, so I decided to get it in another language and selected a beautiful Hebrew font used in the Bible.  My 6-year-old nephew, who is amazed by tattoos, gave me a thumbs up on the design and had the following conversation.

Nephew: What is that on your neck?

Me: It’s says Pure.  That’s what Baby C’s name means.

Nephew: What language is that?

Me: It’s in Hebrew.

Nephew: Hebor?

Me: No, Hebrew.  What Jesus spoke.

Nephew: You mean he didn’t speak English?

Me: At the time in the Bible, he probably spoke Hebrew (or Aramaic) But yes, I’m sure he speaks English.

Nephew: What does God speak?

Me: I assume all languages, since He made them up.

Nephew: Did God make up bad words too?

Me: I doubt it.  Humans probably did.

Nephew: The devil probably did.

I look forward to talking to my daughter about my decision to get tattooed and why she should wait until she’s in college if she wants to do the same.  (I would also advise getting one in a location which wouldn’t prevent you from getting a job!)

My tattoo  represents my new identity.  I am a single mom, who has to be brave, strong, and courageous and getting inked was maybe my way of taking charge.

Hey DFTM family–What mommy tattoo do you have and what was your reason behind it?  Will you be in support of your son/daughter getting inked as well?