Inking My Milestone - My First Tattoo - Ep#9

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Welcome back to next chapter Uncensored.
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I'm Liana Rowlands.
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Grab your beverage of choice, sit back, and let's chat.
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Have you ever noticed someone with a lot of tattoos and wondered what the stories are behind them?
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Especially when they have a full sleeve of artwork or art all over their bodies.
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Today I want to talk to you about getting my first tattoo and exactly what it means to me.
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I still remember when my youngest son came to his dad and I to tell us he wanted his first tattoo.
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We were never against it.
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The only thing we asked of him was to be absolutely sure it was something he'd be happy with long term and that it had real meaning to him.
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Well, he's a musician and one of his absolute favorite bands is Rush.
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So he ended up getting the album cover artwork for 2112, and honestly, it looks great.
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Over the years I've often admired the tattoos I've seen.
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Not only on my friends, but on complete strangers too.
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Whenever I ask people about the meaning behind their ink, they share the stories with so much passion and love.
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Not everyone has a deep story, but those that do, you can just feel how deeply it matters to them.
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Which brings me to today, fast forward to 2026, the year I turn 60.
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I wanted to mark this milestone with something that held a lot of meaning, something permanent that I would be able to share with others.
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In a previous episode, I shared with you some of the grief I've experienced in my life.
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In particular the loss of my sister and the loss of my son's father.
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And before I reveal the actual artwork I chose to have inked on my body, I want to share the meaning behind it.
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For the first few years after my sister passed, I really struggled with the whys and the what's.
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Why her?
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Why so young?
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What is going to happen to her young children?
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I remember sitting on my backyard deck one day, just deeply missing her, wishing I could talk to her one more time.
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I asked for a sign that she was near.
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I looked up and there was a single dragonfly flying in circles right above me.
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Now I'm sure it was just feasting on all the mosquitoes that were out, but it would land on the railing right in front of me, lift off, and fly around some more.
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I recall feeling this sudden warmth come over me.
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It's hard to fully explain, but it felt beautiful, and I hadn't felt that kind of peace in a very long time.
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In my heart, that was my sign that she was with me.
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Now, the father of my children was my first love.
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When we first started dating, I remember us sharing our musical interests.
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I love the fact that he not only shared my favorite bands, but was open to so many different genres.
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Full disclosure, I wasn't a big fan of some of his music, and he wasn't a fan of some of mine, but we always accepted our differences.
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Because of that, shared love, we always had music playing in our house, and our children grew up loving it just as much.
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I fondly remember one summer road trip driving down to Florida.
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Both of our boys had their own music playing in their headphones while their dad and I were up front rocking out to our favorites Pink Floyd, R.E.M.
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Aerosmith.
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I just recall loving every single minute of it.
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So, knowing those two stories, are you able to guess what kind of artwork I had created for me?
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Let me help you out.
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It is a dragonfly flying right into a whimsical trebleclef.
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The entire piece is done in crisp black and grey ink, except for one stunning detail, a brilliant blue jewel making up the body of the dragonfly, with some simple highlights of white around the jewel and throughout the tail.
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It brings my sister's sign and my family's love of music together in one place, permanent, right on my skin.
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Now, for those of you sitting out there worried about the pain factor and how much it might hurt, honestly, it was uncomfortable at times, but it was absolutely nothing that wasn't manageable.
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If I can do it at 60, you can do it too.
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Because this was my first time, I wanted to be absolutely sure I was in the right hands.
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I gathered information from all my friends regarding who did their artwork, and I ultimately decided on an artist I felt could truly capture the image I was looking for.
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And let me tell you, I hit the jackpot.
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This is my official plug for Angela Rose McDonald.
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You can look her up on Instagram at Angela R McDonald or her website www.angelause McDonald.com.
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And you'll see she does some absolutely beautiful work.
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And if you decide to book with her, be sure to let her know that Liana sent you.
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This tattoo was my turning 60 memento.
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What is yours?
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Is it the vacation of a lifetime?
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Is it that haircut you've been wanting for years but you've just been too afraid of the change?
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Whatever it might be, my challenge to you is simple.
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Just do it.
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This is your time to take care of you.
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T hank you so much for sitting with me today.
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It means the world to have you here in our little corner of the podcast world.
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If this episode spoke to you, please share it with a friend who might need to hear it too.
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Hit that follow or subscribe button and leave a review if you can.
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It really helps other women find our community.
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I'll see you next week on next chapter uncensored.
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Until then, protect your peace, give yourself grace, and do something for yourself.
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You deserve it.
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Bye for now.
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Special thank you to Movi for the track Try Me, which was used under a free to use attribution license.