Octopus’s Garden

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I got a tattoo the other day. Its significance is great, so I felt it blog-worthy. First, I feel the need to explain why now, after waiting for so many years, I decided to do this.

I am a gen-Xer. I am of the generation following the biggest in American history, the Baby Boomers. Generations fascinate me and I have recently began reading about and researching them. Being raised by two Boomers in a very conservative home, many things were looked down upon and judged. I am not faulting my parents in any way for my upbringing, I actually think they did a very good job. What I am saying is that for many years….most of my life actually, I have held back from many things simply because I knew I would be judged. I feel like I reached a point of not caring and a place where I can finally be me, and who God created me to be long ago…but never cared about something enough to place it permanently on my body. Until now.

While in Ethiopia, God placed a family with a great need in my path. I had been actively praying about sponsoring 2 children through an agency called Compassion International, but I hadn’t decided who the kids would be. I found the two kids while in Ethiopia. Their mother is single and she cannot afford to sent them to school. God not only allowed me to meet and begin building a relationship with them, He also told me to take care of their schooling for the next 12 years. So I am. Their names are Berhan (6 years old) and Nesanet (5 years old).

Berhan (light) Nesanet (freedom)

Aren’t they precious? While I was there, I found out what their names meant and how to write them in Amharic. Hence my tattoo:

I chose the sun because of the obvious reference to light, and this type of sun in particular looks almost Aztec in nature, and I am partly Indian. To the left of the sun is Berhan’s name in Amharic. I chose the wave because I feel that this freedom began in my life while serving in Hawaii, and God spoke (and continues to do so) through His creation…namely the ocean. To me, freedom is symbolized by the ocean and all that it entails. So to the right of the wave is Nesanet’s name, which as I said means freedom. I chose the colors because they were not so bold and somewhat feminine, and the location being my foot because I had on the shoes of peace when I came to Ethiopia, and hopefully peace is what I brought this family. I do know this to be true for their mother at least, not only because of the financial burden of their education being lifted, but she found peace because she prayed to accept Christ while we were there. All glory to God.

Anyway, there you have it. Oh, and in keeping with my Beatles song titles for my blogs…I chose Octopus’s Garden because of the ink factor If you still don’t get it, revert back to Jr High Science.

Peace.

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