My son has this tattoo on his forearm.
Why you ask? Why would he do that? That’s a question I’ve been wrestling with for over a year.
The short story is he’s an idiot.
The long and true story is that he wants to duplicate the tattoos his cousin Bobby had including this one. I told him that just because Bobby had it doesn’t make it a good idea but I’m not sure it’s right to speak ill of the dead.
Bobby was killed three years ago in a drunk driving accident. His friend lost control of the vehicle they were riding in and wrapped it around a tree. They were both killed instantly. It remains a tragedy of unspeakable proportion. My brother lost his only child. My son lost his childhood best friend. He was only twenty one.
So Alex wants to memorialize his beloved cousin by recreating his tattoos. He never wants to forget someone that he loved. I understand that. I respect it. I am not against tattoos but this one has been hard to swallow. I think because it is offensive to many people, it’s hard for me to accept that it’s now a permanent part of his body. When my brother saw it for the first time he literally said “WTF Alex?”
It’s pretty common knowledge what WTF stands for. Even my mother knows. In my quest to make this go down easier I’ve convinced myself that there are lots of other things it can stand for. What do you think of these?
Why the Frown?
Where’s the Food?
Well that’s Fabulous
What’s that Friend?
Wow that’s fun
Welcome to Facebook
Write to File
What's This For?
Who the Freak?
Where's the Fridge?
Where's the Fish?
What's This Foolishness
Where's the Fire?
We’re Tasting Frosting
Work Time Fun
Welcome to Finland
As much as I’d like to think it stood for something else I know in heart what it really means. It means my nephew is gone way too soon. It means my son has to deal with his loss in the best possible way he knows how. And when I honestly think about it I’m inclined to say WTF myself. In this situation….what else can you say?
We've all heard the saying “A son is a son til he takes a wife; a daughter’s a daughter the rest of her life.” As the mother of two sons I have issues with this statement and now that my oldest is engaged to be married I like it even less. It’s true that my daughter and I remain very close and in fact having the shared experiences of being a wife and mother may have made us even closer. But who says I can’t stay close to my boys too? Why is a man supposed to only have room in his life for his wife? Doesn’t whoever wrote this understand that my sons wouldn’t be who they are today if it weren't for their mother? I didn’t pour my heart and soul in to these boys only to see them on holidays and at the occasional family gathering. I pray my sons’ future wives will see me as friend not foe.
