Inked

The pre-game jitters started a few days ago.  My one and only fear is that its going to hurt.

{romper: HM / cardigan: Costa Blanca / necklace: Banana Republic, gift from Marilou}

Oh my, the florescent lights really bring out those nasty purple bags under the eyes.
But that's what I get for unhealthy diets and malnutrition.

Thankfully, Sarah goes first.  

She was amazing, you wouldn't have guessed that it was her first time.  She didn't whine one bit.

Me on the other hand.

Whined.  Swore. Clutched. Made inappropriate jokes.  Punched out. And whined some more.

When the pain ended, I loved it!    

~*~

Sarah and I decided to get tattoos in memory of our Nanny.  She came up with the brilliant idea of having the word "love" traced out in Nanny's writing.  I decided to take her "love" and put it into her favourite flower, the rose.  I picked the rose because she was so proud of hers and started to teach me how tend to flowers.  Nanny naturally had a green thumb and big beautiful gardens to brag about.  

We decided on a tattoo shop in Kingston. I insisted that the artist, K., do our tattoos because she did my first one about eight years ago.  The experience I had with her was a positive one, where she helped me pick out the perfect tattoo and provided lots of support along the way.

The experience of getting tattoos in memory of Nanny was nothing like anticipated. Sarah and I didn't talk about her when we were getting the tattoos.  Nor was she really brought up at all.  It's probably still too painful for us to talk about freely.  Also, for me, avoiding crying was a difficult task.  Just an FYI, If anyone ever tells you that tattoos don't hurt, they are lying!  Just saying that outlines burn and kill like a bitch... and there's a lot of outline damn outline in the rose that I got.  

Sarah, K. and I talked a lot about love.  We talked about the choices you are given in life.  We shared beliefs and experiences.  I was moved by how positive K. was.  She was truly at peace and threw out a loving energy.  This experience was really special to me.  

I know that our Nanny would probably not be too happy that we scarred our bodies.  She never understood the coolness factors of tattoos.  But I also know that Nanny wouldn't have wanted us to cry and mourn for her, but to move forward.  Talking about love and hearing tips from a peaceful soul on how to stay positive would be something she would be proud of.