My first tattoo I got when I was 17 (in 1991) and at that time, tattoos were not just for anybody; they were thought of as stuff that only bikers and rebels did. For whatever reason I was completely drawn to tattoos and thought they were so sexy and beautiful. I got this white rose with a green vine wrapped around a red heart on my hip, looked great for 6 years but after after 2 pregnancies its not as pretty as it was back in the day.
The 2nd tattoo, I think I was 19; I got with my fiance (at the time, ex, now) he never had a tat and wanted one, so I got a matching gecko on my ankle with him. Its still cute, but it sucks that my work makes me put a band-aid over it when I wear capris; don't want to offend anyone!!
Now while in the Army I fell for a guy whose tattoos peeked out of his shirt on his muscular arms - you can call it lust at first sight, but considering I'm happily married to him after 12 years, I prefer to call it LOVE at first sight. Well for Mother's Day 2 yrs ago, I designed a cross with my initials and my husbands inside the cross with our sons initials on the outside and got that tattoo on my lower back. I'm not your traditional mom, I'm not big into jewelry but I wanted something significant to show how proud I was of my children and to show my faith. My husband who had 6 tattoos at this point, couldn't leave the tattoo parlor without getting another one himself - he got a tribal band around his arm with mine and his initials. As a deputy sheriff his tattoos are all tastefully done on his arms above his sleeves, except for the tribals of our initials and from another trip when he got another tribal on his other arm with our sons initials; they peek out a little.
My husband has been working under contract in Iraq (teaching the Iraqi's how to do law enforcement) since December and when he comes home for vacation in a few days, we have a Tattoo Date. I've designed a tribal tattoo for his upper back, with the lyrics from a song (Five for Fighting, Superman) 'Even Heroes Have a Right to Dream' . I've also designed a dove (the symbol for the holy spirit) with the words 'Child of God' to go on the back of my neck for our Tattoo Date. I'm also going to get three phrases on my shoulder blade in Hebrew 'Saved by Grace', 'Loved with Mercy', and 'Walk in Faith'. So obviously tattoos are not just something pretty or trendy that I'm interested in, these have a very significant meaning to me, as well as my husband. I'm not saying at first they weren't just sexy and attractive, but now I've come to love them as a way I can express myself and show my commitment as never ending.
I know opinions vary greatly on the subject of tattoos, they're not for everyone and they're not 'approved' of by everyone - but that's why its called an opinion people. I read a great article in Today's Christian Woman on the matter of what the bible says. To sum it up Lisa Harper wrote that people often take the verse from Leviticus out of context, if we followed the old testaments ways, we would have so many rituals and ceremonies that "eating shrimp and cheeseburgers" would be considered unclean, so if someone wants to throw that in your face ask them about the rest of Leviticus and whether or not you should also stone someone for going to eat after church (Exodus 31). Here's the point of this, as Christians, we don't follow the old covenant, when Jesus died on the cross he gave us the new covenant and we were free from the old. So to quote Lisa, "Avoid tattoo parlors or Red Lobster doesn't make you righteous - Jesus' death and resurrection do! While you need to remember your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit (1 Corinthians 3:16;2 Corinthians 6:16), you don't have to let other people's sense of religious propriety constrain you."
My tips on getting a tattoo:
So if I had to give advice to a tattoo virgin, looking to get their first tattoo: (1) make sure what you want inked on you is something you won't mind showing your kids later in life, (2) think about the location, will you have to cover it up for a job, will it stretch during pregnancy and scare someone, (3) you MUST go to a reputable artist, see examples of their work, go a few different days and watch them Ink someone to see their work, their technique and feel comfortable with how its done, (4) if you are at a reputable salon, they will be happy to talk to you and show you around and answer any questions you have.
Oh, I won't say they don't hurt, it's more of an annoying/aggravating feeling having your skin pierced numerous times in the same area. The tattoo on my hip tickled (I admit I was intoxicated at the time), the tattoo on the ankle was more painful than the hip - anywhere the bone is will have some pain, my lower back didn't really hurt until he was going over my spine. Okay, so don't drink alcohol before the tattoo (a reputable tattoo artist won't ink you if you're drunk, you'll bleed more since the alcohol thins your blood and makes it more difficult to tattoo). Be sure to eat a good meal, I was so excited for my mother's day tattoo that I hadn't eaten all day, it was 3 pm I'm getting inked and next thing I know my husband is frantic because apparently I've passed out - a King size Snickers and a Diet coke chugged quickly and I was good to go!!
I will give you a warning, some people believe tattoos are 'addicting', I won't say this is true, but I can't explain why we have this need/desire to get more.
Today's Christian Woman magazine, July/August 2008, "Q & A Should Christians get tattoos?" by Lisa Harper
Reference: http://tattoo.about.com
http://www.SacredInk.net/pdf/tattoo_research.pdf
Created in God's Image by Anthony Hoekema (Eerdmans)
Abba's Child by Brennan Manning (NavPress)
Transforming Grace by Jerry Bridges (NavPress)
