I love my tattoos. I have three of them, and they all have significant meanings behind them. I would eventually want more, but they are very expensive and I am a college student. Also, while my parents know that I have tattoos, I don't think they want me to get any more. While I love and respect my parents, I ultimately know that it is my body and my money that I'm spending. However, out of respect, I will probably wait until I am living on my own before I get any more tattoos.

Critics of tattoos believe that we will regret them when we get older, they will sag with age, and we are ruining our bodies. I disagree. We, as human beings, are given the agency to do as we please, as long as it is within reason. I have thought long and hard about the decision to permanently tattoo my body, and I do not regret a single thing.

I have wanted a tattoo for years. I got my first tattoo during my freshman year of college, where I had gone through a tough time transitioning into college life. My first tattoo says "simplify" in my handwriting. This means to me that life is not as complex as we think, and the things that we stress out about can be made easier to understand and accomplish! I have it right on my wrist so I can look at it whenever I am getting overwhelmed and remind myself to breathe and take things one step at a time.

My second tattoo was actually a spur of the moment. In December of 2014, my friend had texted me asking if I would come with her to get her first tattoo. I was flattered that she had asked me to come with her! While I was there, I decided to get "to thine own self true" from "Hamlet" (in my own handwriting, again) on my foot. I read Hamlet in high school and this quote had stood out to me in years. I had always loved this quote because to me it means that we should always act in accordance to our own ideals and beliefs, regardless of who opposes them.

I had been planning my third tattoo since the summer of 2015, but I didn't get it done until December. Although this is my first non-text tattoo, the story behind this picture is worth over a thousand words. This tattoo is partially inspired by the show "How I Met Your Mother" and how the yellow umbrella was a recurring motif throughout the show. More importantly, the weather has significant impacts on the mood, and I tend to get very sad when it rains. The umbrella is symbolic to me in the sense that the umbrella shields us from rain, thus shielding me from the sadness of the world.

My tattoos are so important to me, and I hope that by sharing my personal story about my tattoos, people with tattoos will be able to relate to me. Also, I hope that people who criticize tattoos will be able to be more open minded after reading this!

Honestly, the only person who should be regretting their tattoo is this guy.