Mother's Day - It's Time to Share a Secret
The picture you see to the left is my first tattoo. It's not a great picture but it's good enough for the purposes of this blog post. It's very difficult to take a decent picture of a tattoo on your own arm.
There are three components to this tattoo: the moon, the celtic knot and the tribal braces. Trust me, this does relate to Mother's Day. I'll try to explain my thoughts that went into this tattoo and the connection should become clear.
The Moon: Just before I had this tattoo done I had been studying a number of different religions and cultures. I was on some sort of personal spiritual journey. I was at that point in my life where I started to really question my own beliefs. I had been fascinated with the pagan religions of northern Europe and the UK. For many of these pagan sects they associated the moon with the feminine and it came to symbolize women in general. Much of the pagan culture recognized that the ability of women to give life was something that demanded our respect and gratitude. Sadly, I feel that North American culture is very backward when it comes to our treatment of women.
The celtic knot: The celtic knot for me represents eternity. Well not really eternity but... timelessness. No beginning and no end. It's an easy thing for us to say but a very difficult thing to really comprehend. Go ahead, give it a shot. Sit in a quiet room and try to imagine how immense that is. I don't know of anyone that can do it but you will get to a point where you will feel a sense of complete awe in the magnitude of something that has no beginning or end. Keep that sense of awe in mind as you read on.
The tribal braces: People who are into tattoos have a lot of opinions about the tribal designs and many people see them as just a fad or meaningless decorations that demonstrate a lack of real meaning. I've also had people scoff at the juxtaposition of the tribal braces and a celtic knot. I could be offended but these people don't know me or what this means so the comments mean nothing to me. Pro tip: it's rude to make a negative comment about someone's tattoo without knowing the story behind it. Anyway, for me the tribal braces represent family and not just family by blood but the extended families we have in our friends and people who we love... you know... our tribes.
Throughout my life there have been women who have influenced and cared for me and not the least of these was my mom. Her capacity for love and her never ending sacrifices for her children helped me to have some understanding of the timeless love a mother has for her children and it is a gift that I appreciate more than I can express with just words. This tattoo was for my mom and a reminder to me that no matter what my mom would always be there for me.
As we make our way through life we have moments where things just become clear to us and we embrace those realizations and make them a part of us or at least allow them to shape us and form who we are. I have known many mothers in my life and that love and caring is a common trait that they have all shown and for me it has been inspirational. I have known women who don't have children yet they possess that same incredible capacity for love and caring. So that capacity for love doesn't come from having children. It's something that is there from the beginning and children are just lucky enough to receive it. It is clear to me that being a mother means more than just bearing children and the name mother means so much more than just someone who has given birth. I think William Makepeace Thackeray said it best, "Mother is the name for God in the lips and hearts of little children." (I know all of you geeks out there thought it was Eric Draven who said that). When I use the word mother here I don't just mean a women who has given birth to children. I am referring to any woman who gives selflessly of themselves and not only gives life but provides a kind of nurturing that betters the world we live in.
When I met K.B. and saw the love and devotion she had for her children I knew that she was a person who had an incredible capacity for love. Not just love but unconditional love. In her I saw that same ability to give selflessly that I had so respected in my own mother. Even before I fell in love with K.B. I had a tremendous amount of respect for her. I will always remember the sacrifices she made not just for her children but for mine as well. They may never be fully aware of the specific things she had done for them but I know that none of them ever doubted for a second that she loved them. She never expected praise or recognition, she just wanted her kids to know that they were loved.
Now I see the same motherly traits in my sister and I couldn't be more proud of the person she has become. I see her with Ethan and Seamus and I see that same ability to give selflessly and provide that undeniable love that both my mom and K.B. had demonstrated. Jen, if you ever question your achievements in life, just look at your children and know that there is nothing more important than your role as a mother and there is no greater achievement.
As I have grown as a person, the meaning behind this simple tattoo has grown as well. Today it's a symbol of my love, respect and gratitude for mothers and women who have shown that wonderful ability to give life and nurture life not only in their own children but in other people around them. It reminds me of the kind of person I want to be and it reminds me of how fortunate I have been to have known what it means to be loved unconditionally. The components are symbols of my respect and love for the women in my life and they represent an acknowledgement that I cannot comprehend the depth of love that a mother feels for her children but I can feel a complete and overwhelming sense of awe. Of course, the tribal component represents the importance of family and how the bond of family often stems from the love that mothers give to their families.
I can't give a gift to all of the mothers out there but I can tell you all that every day I see this symbol and every day I appreciate everything that you do. Happy Mother's Day!
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| Three of the most amazing mothers this world will ever know (and one amazing daughter) |
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