I designed this tattoo after my Father died; Mother had been gone for eleven years by then. I'll not begin the story of my tat by telling you, the reader, how perfect and wonderful my parents were. They were human and fallible, but they loved me and raised me the best they could.

See, I grew up in rural Eastern Tennessee, about ten miles from Knoxville, amongst the cows, pigs, and farms. I learned to drive a tractor at five years of age and drove a 3-speed car alone at eight. I can't remember a time when I didn't know how to target practice. My Father, a WWII vet, and my Mother, a housewife, raised me to be independent, strong, and sarcastic as hell. Mother taught me to cook, clean, sew and nurture and my Father taught me to hunt, shoot, drive, repair my car, and box but they both taught me to respect life and all those who partake in it, to seek knowledge, have a broad mind, and always ask "wonder why?" and "how do you know that?".

Walk alone, my Father said, because only you know where you are going.

My tat combines their initials, G(eorgia), H(erb), and D(last name). The vertical lines are not equal in their positioning, but they are the same length representing my parents' roles in the family; the two bottom ovals represent two parents, the dots beneath four children. The continuous circle represents Life itself. The horizontal line represents independence and freedom of thought and action, which were highly valued in my family, with the oval and dots representing manifestation.

So, that's the story of my tat and I thank you for your time.

Peace and many smiles to you all,
AR