Sometimes it's possible to accomplish something important by
doing nothing at all. Well, actually, I did do something. I
resisted. I think that counts. Here's my story.
Many of my friends have been getting pierced and tattooed for
years. It's huge. Every neighborhood has at least one
bodypiercing/bodyart place. Seems like they outnumber taverns
these days. Naturally, they want me in on it.
"C'mon Mike," they say. "It's fun! It's addictive! What? Are you
afraid of needles? The pain feels good! And when it's over, you
have something to show for it!"
I find myself looking less and less like my friends because I'm
not a human signboard for little animals, death, and
calligraphic text. To compound the situation, I don't pick up
the light in every room, reflecting off little pieces of metal
everywhere. (And I do mean everywhere!) But I have a secret to
share. I'll get to that shortly.
While they've been spending their paychecks on this hoopla, I've
been quietly satisfied with myself, exactly as I am. I'm not
suggesting my friends do it out of insecurity. Some do,
obviously, but many got started because their parents told them
not to. I'm no momma's boy, but I'd like to know what kind of a
reason is that?
People are not packrats. OK, that's not true. I am a packrat. I
keep way too much stuff. But that's not really what I mean. I'm
talking about the fact that packrats are known to trade an item
in their pack for ever-shinier objects. I do it too, but the one
that kicks me is how my friends trade fifty dollar bills for yet
another shiny piece of metal, or yet another patch of scribbled
skin.
Now, before anyone thinks I'm complaining, let me point out that
I believe in freedom to choose, and if that makes them happy,
I'm not going to stop them. What? Like they'd listen to me? I'm
the prude with no tattoo, remember? How would I know what it's
like?
From my point of view, I don't need to find out. I don't think
it's necessary to be a slave to the idea of trying everything
once. Some things I don't feel the need to try.
Lately, some of my friends have found that their obsession is
working against them. I'm still single with no kids, but many of
my friends are either married or are single parents. And that's
where the difficulty comes in.
Some of my friends have kids that are between six and nine years
old. About that age, kids start noticing their parents a little
more as people. They look at them differently than they did when
they were infants. Mostly, because kids grow up incredibly fast
today. Much faster than when we were kids, so they notice things
quicker too. Lately what they've been noticing is mom and dad's
tattoos and piercings.
A woman at work told me just last week that she has no idea how
to convince her nine-year-old daughter why she won't take her to
the parlor and get her tongue pierced, "just like mommy."
So here's my secret. I have resisted tattoos and piercing
because I believe in being a natural person. I think the metal
and the ink only serve to detract from the outer beauty of my
friends and it does nothing to enhance their inner person. So I
see no reason to use my body for someone's canvas.
Friends can be so myopic. They don't want to see their kids all
boogered up because they see their kids as beautiful exactly as
they are, but they hold themselves to a double standard. They
continue to encourage me to get some bodyart and I continue to
resist.
Why am I such a holdout? Do I really fear the needle? No, of
course not. I'm the one who used to play with clothing pins and
sewing needles, pushing them through the tops of my knuckles
like a juvenile Freddy Krueger. I also used to do the infamous
sewing-needle-shoved-through-the-flexed-arm trick. The
difference is, it was just play to me, and I wasn't trying to
make a fashion statement.
I simply have a philosophy that says a person needs to stick to
their values and not give in to peer pressure. Piercing and
tattoos have led my friends to nothing but empty pocketbooks and
hard questions from their kids.
Maybe I'll go to work one day with needles through all my
fingers like I did in school. That'll show 'em!
About the author:
Michael Breckenridge has worn many hats in the media business.
See his latest creation, an office joke and entertainment
website called Spread Negativity at http://www.spreadnegativity.
com
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