The Best Souvenir

"My body is a journal and my tattoos are my story."

- Johnny Depp

"Well behaved women rarely make history."

-Laurel Thatcher Ulrich


He says, “Be still, and know that I am God;
    I will be exalted among the nations,
    I will be exalted in the earth.”

-Psalms 46:10

I got a tattoo on Halloween. I decided on a design and seven days later it was forever inked into my skin. This may seem impetuous or reckless, and, well, it kind of was, kind of wasn't. I've wanted a tattoo since I was eighteen, but I was never sure. When I went through a sort of spiritual reawakening my freshman year of college I wanted to get the word, "stillness" to represent Psalm 46:10 and a truth that I know God is still trying to pound through my head. But I was never completely sold on it, partly because I don't feel particularly still, I guess. Anyway, I wanted one, but I could never pin down what exactly I should get, because it really needed to mean something enduring to me.

Picture source :sites.acjc.edu.sg

So, let me take you through my journey to my first, and only (so far), tattoo.

I've learned a lot about myself and life in the last year or so. Life is a marathon, not a sprint. Life isn't ever what you think it will be, it's both better and worse. Life is a series of stages, what you want now, you may not want later, and that's okay. It's okay to be lonely, and it's okay to want to be alone. It's okay to dream about the future, but don't forget to live in the present, cause now is when all of your memories are made.

Life is a journey, you go a lot of places, and you should have meaningful souvenirs. 

In the beginning of October I started a new job as a tutor and in the training I met this guy, Dusty, and he told me he had "a serious case of wanderlust." So it began. That word, "wanderlust," so perfectly defined my feelings. It so perfectly described me. At the same time, I was looking at tattoos of maps. I was really intrigued by the idea of getting a map of the world and coloring in the countries as I visited them. I happened upon a picture of a tattoo that immediately captured me and I knew, at that moment, exactly what I needed to do. 

My inspiration!

During the week between deciding to get a tattoo and actually getting it, I deliberated with myself as to whether or not I was making a good choice, whether or not my reasons were valid and well thought-through. So, after some soul-searching, talks with my mom (where she told me she didn't necessarily want me to get a tattoo but that she knew I had thought about it and she would support me. Best mom ever!) I knew I was ready.

 Motivation, check! Style and placement (cursive, left side), check! Now all that was left was to do was to actually get the thing. 

At Lost Art Tattoo. I was really, really scared. Brad had it under control.

I decided to get my tattoo at Lost Art  in Ogden, because I had seen nothing but beautiful tattoos come out of there and I really liked the artist I spoke to, Brad. I paid my $50 deposit to make my appointment and my mom, my big brother and his girlfriend all came with me to support me during the deed. I was a nervous wreck!

After a few different samples, I decided I was satisfied with the design and we got to the relatively quick business of putting it permanently on my body. People who say it doesn't hurt are lying or, equally likely, have a much higher pain tolerance than I do. Yoga breathing really helped me through the half hour or so it took him to tattoo the design. The "W" and attached curly-q really hurt, let's be real here. I'm no hero, I wanted to cry. But pain is fleeting, and my tattoo is everything I wanted!

My mom held my hand during the tattooing process. I really had no choice but to stay after he began, or else have "lust" on my side forever.

 If I could go back and do it all over again, I would do the exact same thing. It's mostly healed now, but I never knew how much a tattoo would itch!

I have a love of good souvenirs. I love souvenirs that you use and see all the time. My best souvenir ever from my Europe trip is a set of playing cards that I bought in Ireland. They have a different picture on each card with labels saying where it was taken. These cards are well-worn with ratty edges and slightly bent centers where I shuffled too forcefully because I use them all the time. Every time I see them I'm reminded of my time in Ireland.

I see my tattoo as the best kind of souvenir. It's something that I will have with me everywhere I go and see all the time. In twenty years what's important to me might be different, will be different, in one way or another, but this tattoo will endure as a symbol of where I was at and what was important to me when I was at that stage of my life. 

It's also a promise to myself. A promise that I won't stop traveling, or being curious about the world around me. It's a promise to myself that "well-behaved" will never be a term applied to me as long as I have anything to say about it. It's a reminder that there's a lot of life out there to be lived and that I've been blessed already to experience so many wonderful things.

They say tattoos are addictive, and I don't know if that's true or not, but I'm thinking the map is next.

Finished product!