Recently a niece of mine was spending the weekend with our kids, her cousins. Being very adventurous, it’s never really unexpected when she asks far out questions. I must admit, however, that I definitely paused in my tracks when she started asking me about tattoos.

My wife and I certainly have nothing against personal expression or the means people use to make themselves more recognizable. Perhaps this is why my niece came to me to understand tattoos versus my sister, her mother. Many years ago, she had seriously considered getting angel tattoos put on the small of her back, but decided against.

While I was never quite sure why she opted not to tattoo, when this little 10 year old started asking me if I preferred butterfly tattoos over unicorns, I immediately thought back to Sis, and her time of consternation as it related to the decision making process.

Of course, I soon snapped out of that merry little jaunt down memory lane prior to dispensing any irreversible advice. When I asked her why she was so interested, she let me know that her “bestest” friend in the world had an older sister who’d just been tattooed. Since the two girls still shared a bedroom, the younger had become infatuated with the concept and shared the excitement with my niece.

Talk about peer pressure!

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