Whenever I walked into the house with a new tattoo or piercing, my sweet mother would always squawk at me. “Why would you do that to your body?! You wouldn't slap a bumper sticker on a BMW!” I never understood what she meant.
A lot of dearly loved people in my life have asked me variants of the same question.
“Why?”
To which my teenage self would never have a logical response, only that it's something I desire very deeply, something that feels like a sacred ritual.
I've realized lately how I truly feel about my tattoos and why I feel so strongly about them.
Growing up with a religious mother, I was indoctrinated with the belief that the human body is a holy temple, to which I still agree. But I don't agree that God asks us to leave our holy temples undecorated.
When I hear people say, “I would never do something so permanent to my body!” I can't help but laugh because I for one, believe our human bodies ARE the most temporary, impermanent part of our existence. Our human life span is but a blink of an eye compared to the eternal, the forever.
The Creator made us in His likeness; as creators. Whether you create on a canvas, or by building, speaking, singing, teaching, or inking your body, you are a creator and you were designed to create by the Master Creator Himself. I don't believe He asks us to refrain from expressing ourselves. He expressed Himself by making us sensitive, cognitive creatures with a desire to express and create.
I am here, now. I will continue to create for others as well as myself including expression on this life's temple because I am a creator and I enjoy creating. It brings me joy and paints my soul with color. I cannot believe in a Creator that doesn't want His creation to be happy.
