Tattoo time!

I finally did it.  The one tattoo idea that I have put off for the longest amount of time has finally been accomplished!

21 years ago, after Grandma and Mom passed away, and while Dad was dying, I got my first tattoo.

It was a rite of passage for me, and was a way that I marked myself as a priestess of the old religion.  I chose the triskele, a very powerful symbol for me, then, now, and always, and a passion flower vine.

Over some brief time, I came to dislike the crooked way the vine image was tattooed around my left ankle, so I had another tattoo added to it, in an effort to balance it out.

In that way, the image on my left ankle, with its green triskele medallion on the outside, and a crooked vine all around, with a feather on the inside of the ankle, came to symbolize for me Earth and Air.

Once the feather was in place, I started to design, in my mind, the image that I would some day have tattooed upon my right ankle to balance things out....something that would represent Fire and Water.

I always figured it would be Celtic knotwork of some kind, with colors to represent fire, and some rendition of water.

In the interim, I got my Dragonfly for Spirit, on my right shoulder blade, the fall after my divorce in 2000 (another rite of passage....earned my wings!).

Then, just about 2 1/2 years ago, during a break in chemo, I got my red winged black bird....both times, still knowing that the Fire Water one would come when it was TIME for it.

Many years ago, Dave introduced me to the image of the Bowen knot.

He and his son both have a tattoo of the Bowen knot.

During a time when Dave and his son were estranged, Dave had his modified with a second knot overlapping his own...it was a way he could join with his son when his son didn't want contact.

Of course, his son was mad about this change, and still doesn't understand it.

Anyway, a few years ago, in my search for the perfect image, I found a Bowen knot, turned so that it forms an equilateral cross, or Solar cross,  in a circle of Celtic knotwork.   PERFECT!

When Dave met his new tattoo artist a few months ago to start work on his big arm piece, I went with him for the second visit.  I looked at the artist's work, and the shop, and thought I would be pretty comfortable going there myself.

I connected with this artist on Facebook, and sent him the image, and my ideas.

Many weeks went by, Dave's project was completed, and it was FINALLY my turn this past Tuesday.

The artist sketched out his idea, and I loved it.  It was perfectly suited to what I had in mind.

SO.... this happened!!

I am calling this a new beginning.... I have come through an incredibly difficult journey, and emerged on the other side of it, ready to move on into the next phase of life.  With confidence that, whatever the future holds, I will walk  through it in balance.

 The stencil, that's the Bowen knot in the middle

 Doing the outline. Ow.

 The coloring in.... I thought the outlining was bad....wow.

Final clean up.  Click on any image to enlarge.