I’d Even Dye For You
My best friend Rachel and I are going to get tattoos. I’ve actually been thinking about getting a tattoo for several years. I thought I’d get something that reminded me of my Grandma Playter, but I could never find something that was “just right”. Then I started thinking about it, and decided it would be really cool for my best friend and I to get matching tattoos. Cheesy? Maybe. But I like the idea, and so does she.
I think I may get the tattoo on my right foot, on the inside between my heel and ankle. That way, it’s not in an area that would stretch or sag, and I could easily hide it if I had to, for example, for a formal occasion.
Here’s the basic design idea so far:
And here’s the symbolism:
Grapes are used for wine, and wine symbolically evokes the idea of fun, merriment, celebration, etc. Wine also gets better with age.
The Hebrew word on the left side means “love” and comes from 2 Samuel 1:26b where David is talking about his and Jonathan’s friendship:
Your love for me was wonderful,
more wonderful than that of women.
(So basically, their bond went even deeper than any romantic love they might have had with the opposite gender.)
The Greek word on the right side is the word for “friends” from John 15:13:
Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends.
The Hebrew is on the left since it is from the Old Testament, and the Greek is on the right since it is from the New Testament.
Perhaps the most important symbolism of the tattoo is that it’s permanent. Like our friendship.
minijonb responds:
Posted: May 3rd, 2007 at 3:10 pm →
i think that’s a great idea! go for it.
…but who is this David guy and why does he think we’re friends?
= ; - )
mini Jon(athan) B
laughingattheslut responds:
Posted: May 3rd, 2007 at 6:35 pm →
I’ve always thought tattoos were a bad idea period. If you don’t like it later, you’re stuck with it anyway.
No matter how cool it looks when you first get it, tattoos just never look good on older people. And we are all going to get older if we don’t die first.
I like the words. I’m not sure about the grapes. You both seem very religious, and at some point you might not want to have to explain the wine symbolism to people at church. Or you might decide to give up alcohol all together and then be stuck with tattoos that remind you of wine.
That’s wonderful that you think you’ve found someone that will be your friend forever, but I thought the same thing, and I was wrong. Can’t imagine having to deal with a tattoo on top of everything else.
Have you considered something besides grapes? Other things get better with age, or start out as something plain and become something more. Butterflies. Diamonds. Stuff like that.
Also I have heard that different color inks fade at different rates. Have you done any research into what colors are going to look good in twenty years or so?
Playtah responds:
Posted: May 3rd, 2007 at 7:11 pm →
minijonb - Lol. Thank you!
laughingattheslut - Thank you for your comment. I’ve done enough thinking about this (years) that I’m satisfied that it’s an OK decision for me. I also figure that even if I someday come to the conclusion that I’m uncomfortable with the concept of alcohol, the Bible DOES mention wine, and even if it means grape juice (which I would argue it doesn’t), they both still come from grapes, so it’s a win-win situation. I like the grapes - it’s original…lots of people have butterflies, roses, etc. Grapes are special. Jesus first miracle was turning water to wine. Jesus said that He is the vine, we are the branches. Grapes have many symbolic aspects. And even if I were never to see Rachel for another day in my life (God forbid), she’s impacted me so much that a tattoo reminding me of her can’t be wrong.
laughingattheslut responds:
Posted: May 3rd, 2007 at 7:54 pm →
Research the colors. If you do get a tattoo, grapes come in all kinds of colors, and you should be able to get an ink that won’t look too bad over time.
Playtah responds:
Posted: May 3rd, 2007 at 8:20 pm →
laughingattheslut - Thank you for the heads up! Do you have a tattoo? Just curious. You know a lot about them, so I figure you either have one, or know someone close who has one
laughingattheslut responds:
Posted: May 3rd, 2007 at 8:55 pm →
No, I don’t have one. They seem to come up a lot in fiction, like even the X-files. Scully got a red tattoo that made her see things or something. And there’s a lot of books full of cool pictures, but the people I see with them in real life just don’t look the same.
You hear a lot about people trying to get tattoos removed or wishing that the hadn’t gotten a tattoo. But I’ve never heard anyone sat years later that getting the tattoo was like something they were really glad they did.
brett responds:
Posted: May 4th, 2007 at 8:14 am →
Here’s that south park thing I found for you wendy
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RATf9SEd7ZE
And here’s another one I found along the way
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CEUOLe_FuYk
Andy responds:
Posted: May 4th, 2007 at 9:24 am →
Alright, Ink for everybody! Tats, piercings, loud horrible rave music! Drink until everybody passes out!….oh wait, that’s not this site, that’s the dance club down the street from me. sorry.
Tattoos are pretty sweet though. just make sure it doesn’t look like a prison tat, folks just start asking the wrong questions.
dmarks responds:
Posted: May 4th, 2007 at 9:33 am →
My general thoughts on this have been expressed well by others above.
I have friend with tattoos, but they are motorcycle people.
Have you tried those temporary tattoos? If not, you might try that just to see how it goes first. It’s not the same thing, but at least there are no regrets and it might give you more of an idea before you make the lifetime tattoo commitment.
I was also going to add the plight of poor Johnny Depp. Once deeply in love forever with Winona Ryder, he had tattooed on one arm “Winona Forever”. As we know, it was not forever. But still he was stuck with this tattoo. He ended up changing it to “Wino** Forever”. Some may think this is a nice save, but it makes him seem a little foolish overall. At least to me.
babybull40 responds:
Posted: May 4th, 2007 at 2:22 pm →
nice.. but painful.. good luck with that…
deb responds:
Posted: May 5th, 2007 at 1:57 pm →
When my brother died I got a tattoo in memory of him. I’ve had the tattoo since I was in my early twenties…I’m now close to 40 and haven’t regretted having it a day since I got it.
Rachel responds:
Posted: May 7th, 2007 at 8:05 am →
I already have one tattoo and have had it for over five years. I am fine with getting another one.
I made sure last time that I got it in a place that I could easily cover up so that it wasn’t unprofessional looking. I will do the same with this one.
I feel the same way about Wendy. If we never saw each other another day in our lives I still love her to death and would be happy to have a reminder of our friendship.