Miley Cyrus recently stated she was addicted to getting
tattoos. While I believe getting tattoos is the least of Miley’s problems, it
got me to wondering about my own baby girl. One day she will be a woman and
what if she wants to cover her body with art, or go Goth, or what if punk come
back and she wants a Mohawk, or shave half her head?
Truth be told, I have thought about getting a tattoo in
honor of my sister who passed in 2004. I even know what I want and where I want
it. A tiny butterfly whose tail spells out Anna in cursive on the inside of my
wrist. Easy to hide with a watch if I need to. But I’ve never done it. I’ve
even thought about dying my hair an electric blue when my Young Adult books
come out to give me an edgy look (those that know me, go ahead and laugh. I’ll
wait).
Back to Miley, I’m not sure how I would act if Baby Girl
came home with a tattoo. I would love to say that I would be understanding,
knowing she was exploring her individuality. I would love to say if she came
home wearing all black, her light blue eyes doused with black eyeliner, that I
would understand she was exploring her own style. I would love to say if my
daughter came home with a purple Mohawk, I’d ask her if she was going to dye
the tips pink.
As much as I would love to say all those things, I also know
that having tattoos, purple Mohawks or a Goth mentality will make her life
harder. As wrong as it is, people will judge her on her appearance. She will be
labeled for her style and not in a good way. As much as my heart will accept
whatever she becomes, my brain will worry for her. Thankfully, I don’t have to
worry about that for a while.
And as for Miley, I don’t care how many tattoos you get, but
here’s something to think about while you’re twerking on YouTube for the
millionth time. Classy is also sexy, some would say even more so.
