My First Tattoo: What & Why

Greetings Internet,

So on the 17^th of January, on a sunny Wednesday morning I headed into a tattoo parlour to start my journey with tattoos. To give you a bit more background information, I have loved tattoos from an early age. I am well aware people have various opinions on tattoos and I respect them all however, I am someone that has always known that tattoos would be my thing which is why I never questioned my decision to get a tattoo at 18. I just think tattoos are such an incredible form of self-expression and a beautiful form to portray bits of ones personality and meaningful life experiences by the use of art and writing.

Although I have always known that tattoos would one day cover my body, I never planned my first tattoo until the week before when I had a spontaneous moment of visiting multiple tattoo parlours in search of the perfect tattoo artist for me. If you’re thinking of getting a tattoo, one of my top tips would definitely be to shop around because once you do, you will realise you will get different prices everywhere and also be sure to keep in mind each tattoo artist has their own style so finding the perfect one, may take a good amount of research.

I wanted my first tattoo to be something simple, yet meaningful to me.  I also wanted it placed on a part of my body I could hide or reveal as I saw fit. When it came down to actually pick something to be tattooed on my body forever, it was no doubt a huge and exciting decision but what I initially went with was “You won’t but you might” which I got tattooed across my rib. It is a combination of words which may seem very random at first but let me explain…

"You won’t but you might” is a lyric from one of my favourite songs “Between the Bars” by Elliott Smith. This song is one which I kind of consider ‘my song’ if that makes sense because it was one I turned  to in a difficult time and continue to turn to on days where living gets a bit much.

The origin of the lyric means a lot to me in itself however the meaning of ‘You won’t but you might’ to me is ultimately why the tattoo is now inked on my body. Everyone in life comes across situations which tear us down and break us into pieces and that is unfortunately unavoidable. My tattoo is simply a reminder to me that when progress sometimes grinds to a halt and in times when I may feel like I don’t have the strength in me to face the obstacles in life, I can still do it. I may doubt myself along the way, but I can do it, even in times when the universe does not fully have my back.

Another meaning, probably the main one actually, is to be self-dependent, to love however not to prioritize people’s needs above my own because at the end of the day, self-care should always be the priority. On numerous occasions throughout my life, I have gotten hurt by other people, sometimes it was their fault, sometimes my own but regardless – it hurt. People I cared about made me promises which unfortunately were not kept and “You wont but you might” is a reminder that no matter what someone says, promises are broken and people change and at the end of the day, I have to learn to depend on myself for my own happiness. At times I got hurt because of me pouring all my love and care out on another person, forgetting about my own needs and what I’ve learned the hard way is that you can’t help others unless you help yourself first because it simply never ends well. I am a caring person by nature and made that mistake quite a few times but have now learned that what I need and want is just as important as helping people I care about.

On a positive note, “You won’t but you might” is also a major self-love statement for me because even though I may feel like I won’t achieve my goals and most far-fetched dreams, I still might get there.

So that’s the meaning which I hope I managed to get across correctly because it is a bit hard for me to put into words . I hope you enjoyed this post. If you would be interested in me doing a post on the actual tattoo experience as well as my advice and tips for getting your first tattoo, do let me know and I’ll happily do one. I definitely plan to get more tattoos in the future and my ‘Tattoos To Do” journal keeps growing so I’ll be sure to keep you all updated.

All the love,
Karolina.x