Danielle's Mother Walks with Her

Last week I met Danielle in Penn Station and spotted this tattoo on her left foot:

She explained that November 7, 1958 was her mother's birth date. Danielle was just a little girl of eight years old when her mother passed, and she got this, her only tattoo, to memorialize her mom.

The reason she got it on her foot was because her mother's funeral card had the famous "Footprints" prayer:

“Footprints:
One night a man had a dream. In it he was walking along a beach with the Lord. Across the sky flashed scenes from his life. For each scene he noticed two sets of footprints in the sand, one belonging to him, and the other to the Lord.

When the final scene of his life flashed before him, he looked back at the footprints in the sand. He noticed many times along the path of his life there was only one set of footprints and realized that they came at the hardest and saddest times of his life.

Bothered about this, he questioned the Lord, saying "Lord, you said that once I decided to follow you, you'd walk with me all the way. But I have noticed that during the most burdensome times in my life there is only one set of footprints. I don't understand why when I needed you the most you would leave me."

The Lord replied, "My precious child, I love you and I would never leave you. During your times of trial and suffering when you see only one set of footprints, it was then that I carried you." 

She had this done at a tattoo convention by an artist from Long Island's DaVinci Tattoo Studio.

Thanks to Danielle for sharing this very personal tattoo with us here on Tattoosday!

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Audrey's Wrist Tattoos Keep Her Grounded

Last week I had a wonderful Wednesday of inkspotting, photographing four tattoos at lunch, and those of a fifth volunteer after work.

The run started with Audrey, whose tattooed wrist caught my eye in the plaza in front of Borders.

As it turns out, Audrey has both wrists done:


Her left wrist bears the slogan "Be Present" and the right wrist hosts a series of Roman numerals.

The "III.XX.MMVIII" refers to her sobriety date, 3/20/2008. I asked her then, if the phrase "Be Present" was from program literature. She acknowledged that it was and said she had no issue with my sharing these tattoos here on the blog.

When I asked if she found that her ink gave her strength in recovery, she nodded and said that the phrase makes her "mindul of what I'm doing in any given moment".

And the date? "It keeps me from making mistakes," she added.

These are two of her four tattoos. Recollecting my wife Melanie's surprise at the pain she experienced from the "13" on her inner wrist (recalled here), I asked Audrey if these strings of letters had been particularly painful. She smiled and said, "No, actually, it kinda tickled".

She could not recall the name of the artist that did these tattoos, but she did confirm they were inked at Lucky Dog Tattoos in the Fresh Meadows section of Queens.

It never ceases to amaze me how people use tattoos not only to decorate their bodies, but to give themselves the tools for survival. Whether it be a memorial piece that exudes comfort in periods of loss, or anchors used to ground the individual as they face the challenges of daily life, the tattoo can often be the center that makes life more bearable, that makes living each day a more pleasurable experience.

Thanks to Audrey for sharing these particularly personal tattoos with us here on Tattoosday!