“Teaching Little Kyla…”
A series on Travis and Sarah’s journey of parental flubs, flaws, failures and accidental^ fortune.
I have been considering getting a tattoo for way too long now. I need to just do it. The one thing keeping me from it is that I don’t want to be in the “everybody’s doing it / it makes you a trendy ‘with it’ emergent” category. If I do proceed to have a colored liquid substance commonly called ink injected/burnt into my epidermis I would choose to have some combination of either Hebrew or Greek lettering imprinted. I know Greek better so I am more likely to go with that. My current choices are as follows:
1.) The 5th chapter of The Gospel of Matthew in Greek text line after line across my shoulders and back.
2.) Same as above but down my side along the rib cage area.
3.) Alpha on one forearm. Omega on the other.
4.) ek statis in Greek (somewhere).
5.) splaxnizomai in Greek (somewhere).
6.) ekklesia in Greek (somewhere).
7.) “I heart Mom” on my shoulder inside a heart (ok, not really… just to clear that up).
Kyla has been learning the English alphabet. She is really starting to get it down and is not yet 2 years old. “J-K-L-M-N-O” is giving her some trouble but she nails the “P.” I’ve started to teach her Hebrew and Greek. She does well with “Aleph-Bet-Gimel-Dalet” and “Alpha-Beta-Gamma-Delta.” I was thinking about making up some flashcards for her but then realized I could simply use my tattoos.
Should I get a tattoo?
What should it read?
If you had a child age 13-19 who wanted a tattoo would you allow it?
Should I be teaching my daughter the biblical languages?
^ There is someone(s) greater than me/us (a divine being and a community of people) that intercede with grace and giving.
do it.
tats are fun.
you tell Kyla she can decide when they are 18 and give Beth a heart attack.
1) No tattoo I do not understand its purpose. Is it to gain attention for yourself? Perhaps a less painful gesture would be to wear your hair in a bun.
Seriously, is it to generate conversation about Christ?
2) If one decides to have a tatoo, perhaps a Hebrew word on one forearm and the translation or attempt to translate on the other.
3) In reference to Matthew 5; sounds painful and unrealistic.
Consider simply Matthew 5, with a lure to cause people to look it up and/or study it. ie. Meditate on Matthew 5.
4) Using Greek letters, will your target audience get the message of the letters?
5) Where are Sarah and Kyla going to get theirs. What kind?
6) I guess that I am locked into being old and simply ask; Why?
Perhaps it is just a cool thing to do for no good reason and besides everyone is doing it. Perhaps I am just cheap and would not spend the money. Perhaps I’m just an old _ _ _ _.
Ok, I’m deeply hurt…you’re not going to seriously consider tattoo # 7? Why is it that the parents are the last to be considered? Will Kyla do likewise when the time comes for her to decide whether to get a tattoo or not? You know, the time is coming soon when we’ll all get the chance to decide to get a tattoo or not: Rev.14:9-10.
Forearm tats, huh? That’s bold. I like it, but is it really your style? I don’t even know what that means, but I thought it a fitting question nonetheless. I got a tattoo once, still have it in fact. It hurt, but not nearly as much as I thought it would. I think getting an entire chapter inscribed on your back would hurt mega-bad though. I hear those shoulder blades are a rough spot. If I were you, I’d go for the tramp stamp. I have a friend who got his kids foot prints on his chest from their birth cert. I thought that was way cool and very meaningful, but again, I’m sure it hurt like a beast. Pain is temporary but tattoos are forever.
read leviticus and then decide.
steph i don’t know what leviticus has to do with getting a tattoo unless there is some kind of guide on how to choose your artist. i want a tat and can’t find the artist to do it.
This is far too complex an issue for me. It’s not the morality of getting a tattoo that messes with me, it’s narrowing down the list. Permanence is probably an issue as well but I could get over that. How do you make a choice? What defines you? Maybe that’s taking a tat too seriously, but if I’m getting some ink it’s going to be something defining. That’s why I’ll probably never get one.
Do it man.
I got one almost 4 years ago (here) and I’ve never regretted it.
In fact, I’m with you – and your post made me think of a post I was going to write about this anyway…;) So, I’m not copying you, really…
But yeah – I really want another one. But I’m not sure what I’d get yet…I really like the Greek word “epektasis” – kind of a perpetual seeking…
Who knows…but yes. Get it.
Do it. Tattoos are really cool only if they have true meaning behind it. (I got a tattoo in honor of my grandma that passed away from breast cancer.) I like the idea of the hebrew or greek script because it can make people want to ask you about it, aka giving you an opportunity to talk about what it means to you.
if it’s on the bicep make sure the alpha is lower case and as small as possible. otherwise when you’re 50 and your skin is flabby it will look like a whale…and why not get a tat…everyone else is
I have no problems with tattoos. I actually think they are cool. I still probably would never get one just because of the permanance aspect. I am pretty sure I would want something else after a couple of years. My present self would hate my past self if it had gotten a tattoo, cause it probably would have been a cheesy Christian saying or bible verse.
I wouldn’t have a problem with my kids getting a tat, but I think I would ask them to wait until they were 18 and a little bit mature. I would also suggest that they pick a design and reflect on it for a year.
Adam,
I’ll have a longer response in one of my future posts about these tattoo posts of ours. Hey, man… all things open source, right? Thanks for the shout out on pomomusings.
matt,
i had verses from leviticus quoted at me by a man who believed (truly) that i was defiling God’s temple by having the tattoo on my foot… the one that is a dove with the word “redeemed” under it.
oh, christ followers.
Got one after my first semester of seminary- Three dogwood blossoms along a branch with an Alpha and Omega between the flowers. It’s only a couple inches wide and just out of vision on my back *unless I’m in a swimsuit. It’s not OUT THERE because I didn’t want it to be an “everyone’s doing it” thing. I wanted a permanent celebration of my decision to give my working life to God after fighting that call for 20+ years.
haha did you ask him if cuts his hair or shaves? or if he wears clothing made of different fabrics? these rules are far more important i think.
tk, i love the idea of the sermon on the mount on your rib cage. please do that.
Martin Van Buren suggests that you DON’T get a tattoo of the cotton gin. That thing sucks!
I think Matthew 5, but get it on your stomach but spaced out so it looks like you have killer abs!
you should get “wwjd” or perhaps “become the better you” tatooed on your arms…
don’t forget the baptist thought…once tatooed always tatooed…however the Nazarenes think you may need to be tatooed several times in order to be truly tatooed…the apostolics want you to be tatooed with Jesus name only while the pentecostals want to tatoo you to the point that you speak in other tongues…wow this is getting complicated…
pray about it first. then, make your decision.
ps. i admire you for questioning your motives behind getting one
I think it’s largely a result of PNG that I think about things like these. I want to be able to work with other guys with my shirt off without having to worry about what ____ thinks about my tattoo.
If I did ever get one it would be somewhere where no one would know it unless I wanted them to (like the inside of my lip).
It totally stole half of my comment.
I was pretty much saying that I don’t know where I will go, what I will do, who I will be during this life.
It could well be that I wind up in a place where tattoos would really inhibit the formation of close relationships with locals.
It is also possible that I wind up in a place where tattoos would help form those relationships. But it is a lot easier to decide then to get a tattoo, then to decide to get one now and later get it removed.
So… that’s where the comment above comes in. So read that now.
yes
idk
no, @ 18 she chooses
yes
dude…tats are dumb. Don’t do it.
Getting a tattoo is a very serious choice. It is with you for the rest of your life. Speaking from experience, I see the USAF star and wings om my arm each morning and it reminds of what I do and how much pride I have in what I do. When I was considering getting a tat I was stumped like you. Get one don’t get one. If it is something you can live with and is not blasphemous (and your wife can live with it!) then go for it. If you like it don’t worry about what others think. If your tattoo means a lot to you then that is all that matters.
It’s up to you. Tats are not what they used to be. They have deep meaning and some are so beautiful. I went through a really hard time in my life, then got back to the Lord, never to stray again, and got the butterfly on my ankle when in Vegas. Special place, special tat, “New Life”. I haven’t regretted it a day!
Get your emergent glasses tatooed on your face. Then you’ll never forget to wear them.
people take tattoos way to seriously.
i’m an enthusiast, and appreciate it as an art form and means to convey sentiment and initiate conversation.
i also appreciate it as a poorly thought means of celebrating or remembering some trivial act.
it’s fun to undergo (doesn’t hurt anywhere near what some kids let on).
it’s always a great way to break the ice.
and it’s just rad to look at.
I am getting my first tattoo TODAY! ALPHA and OMEGA and a CROSS all overlapping with 3D shading… upper arm. I’m 45, a biker and a missionary and I’m just going for it. To GOD be the glory…
I’m wondering what the difference is between “Christian” tattoos and cheesy “Christian” t-shirts….perhaps it is that I can take off my t-shirt but the tattoo is forever. Hmmm…