This time of year always gets me thinking, not about resolutions, but rather what goals I should set for 2015, what guidelines I should try to live by... assessing last year's ambitions and realigning them for the 364 days ahead.
My goals aren't those cliche 'run a half marathon' (although I do intend on attempting that) or 'lose 7lbs' (that will be a focus too...I blame Santa) but rather the aspirations I have to become the best version of me that I can possibly be. Practicing meditation, living fearlessly, and consciously focusing on being present, are a few on the list this year.
But I digress, that has nothing to do with tattoos. And for the record, I ended up writing my 2015 goals in a 3-page diary entry (3-pages will save your life by the way, find out more here.) It felt great to just flarb them all out into sentences on a page instead of the 'my expectations are so high' bullet points of years past.... do you find you try to come up with more resolutions to fill up the page?? I do!
And yet I digress again; let's get to the point. Tattoos. Love them? Hate them? Have them? Want them? I have to admit, as a teenager I wanted one, a butterfly, but only in a conspicuous area that would be exposed if I were wearing a dress, and who knew where fashion trends would go. I was convinced that getting one in the pelvis area would be awesome. Until one day I realised I don't even like butterflies; those suckers freak me out.
As I tripped over people at the beach this week, I couldn't help but notice a sea of tattoos, and wonder what motivated them, or anyone, to get one? What clues about their character are they trying to show us before we even meet? What type of reminder or remembrance are they showcasing for the world to see? Did they mean it for the world? Because they care about what other people think? Or was it something just for themselves? To show off, to be cool, or to stand out? The girl with flowers up her back... beautiful, but why? The chef with a whisk on his forearm...to remind himself he likes to cook or instill in us his dedication of being a chef?
I haven't ruled out getting inked one day, but for me it would be in the form of words that I want to live by. Like an affirmation that isn't second nature to me yet. It would serve as my visual reminder to live by this code. I would get a tattoo for just me...which is why it would either be on my wrist, perfectly placed to be concealed by a watch band, or somewhere on my body that I would see in the mirror each day when I step out of the shower. Maybe my rib cage (like that wouldn't hurt.) And mark my words, I'll be starting a trend when I tell you this; the tattoo on my torso would be written in mirror writing. That way only I could read it, when I look at my reflection; reflecting on my self and refocusing on my goals. No one else would easily understand the inverted ink as anything more than a cool pattern of lines, and that's the way it should be. So many of those tattoos on the beach felt like they were put there for everyone else to admire. I'm so tired of us doing things because we care about what everyone else thinks! Do it for you. Tell me why you did or didn't, and what they mean to you.
Live fearlessly.
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