It has been a while since I last wrote, my summer has been a whirlwind. I am heartbroken to say that 1 month ago, on July 2nd, my mother took her last breath here on earth. I am comforted by the fact that it was peaceful, she was surrounded by her family and she is not in pain anymore. As my trip to Colorado was coming to an end I was dreading coming back to Canada, knowing it would be incredibly difficult to try and step back into my normal routine. I had been staying at my sister’s house for 3 weeks and our bond had never been stronger.
We were drinking tea in her kitchen one night when she mentioned she wanted to get a tattoo to honor our mom. I have 1 tattoo that was done on my 18th birthday and I strategically placed it so no one would see it unless I wanted them to (nothing scandalous, just a teddy bear on my lower back). I had never really considered getting inked again but my sister planted the seed and the idea took root. We looked on Pinterest at tribute tattoos, there were many beautiful ones. Celtic knots, infinity symbols, quotes, birds, etc… But there was nothing that felt right.
The great tattoo search went on for a few days and all the while we were sifting through our mom’s belongings; looking through pictures, cards, yearbooks, letters, etc. I found an old grocery list in her jacket pocket and started to weep, not because she needed to buy coffee and tomatoes, in fact I don’t know why it hit me at that moment. I read through the list with tears streaming down my face, I always loved my mother’s delicate and precise handwriting. That was it! I could get a tattoo of something in my mom’s handwriting. I mentioned to my sister that maybe we could get her signature or something, she didn’t say much about it. She went upstairs and found a Thanksgiving card from my mom, the signature line was so beautifully crafted. In my mom’s stunning handwriting, it simply read:
I love you!
Mom
Out of all the things I could have permanently etched into my skin, this was clearly the right choice. My sister got hers on her arm and I got mine on my foot and now we have another little sister thing that binds us together. Every time I look down at my mother’s handwriting on my body I am reminded of how much she loved me.
What do you think,would you ever get a tribute tattoo? Please share and leave comments below.
To see my painted interpretation of one of my mom’s most favourite pearls, click here.
