Yes I have tattoos. Two of them. My husband is not a fan of tattoos; however, convincing him to allow me to get my first one wasn't hard. The second one was his idea. God could not have given me a more perfect mate.
I can't tell you how many times I've had friends say something along the lines of "You're the last person I would have ever expected to get a tattoo."
Me too. But I did and here's the story. My story.
The Semicolon - Congrats on getting a grammatical element permanently marked on your body. Thanks! It comes from the Project Semicolon movement meant to bring support and encouragement to those who suffer with depression, anxiety, suicidal ideation, and self harm. I struggle with all of them. When the struggle had really gotten deep and I explained to my husband how having the tattoo would help me and others he was fully supportive.
Just like the semicolon serves in a grammatical sense to represent where the author could have ended a sentence, the semicolon is indicative that the thought goes on - my story isn't over. My life isn't over.
So why the 3 dots? Oh, I'm so glad you asked. Three has been a precious number to me since I started dating my husband. Our first date was February 3rd, engaged April 3rd, married November 3rd. Became a family of 3 in 2003.
First and foremost the 3 dots represent the source of my strength: The Father, Son, and Holy Spirit
Second, the 3 dots represents my family: My husband, my daughter, and myself.
Third, I got the tattoo on August 12, 2015. The 3rd anniversary of my dad's passing.
Fourth, this was also the same day that I hit my 100th checkin with Camp Gladiator Boot Camp (kind of a big deal among campers and trainers). It was the first time I had ever accomplished such a noteworthy physical goal for myself. So the 3 dots represent the 3 numbers - 1 0 0.
As you can see, my tattoo was not a flippant decision and I have zero regrets. There have been many times I have looked at my tattoo as a reminder to keep going. There have been times it's been used to allow me to tell others about the saving grace of Christ.
The Cross - I had really wanted the word "redeemed" as a tattoo, but given the space it wasn't the best idea (as many tattoo artists advised). My husband's idea... a cross. The cross was done to commemorate my 250th check in with Camp Gladiator (June 2016). Yes - 250 times, 250 hours, I had dedicated to my physical health; while my mental health was in complete disarray.
I added a different element to my 3 dots this time. I had them done in red and black. These are the 2 branding colors for CG. I did them RED BLACK RED as a reminder that the blood of Jesus covers all my sin.
The BLUE of it all. Blue (one of my favorite colors) really represents my connection to my dad. We both shared September birthdays (sapphire is the birthstone for that month). I may not have been as close to my dad as I always wanted, but where we lacked in a relationship via proximity, we made up for in the matters of the heart and mind as kindred spirits.
So it is rather appropriate that I'm writing this while sitting in the Kindred Coffee shop.
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