Tattoo link up

Getting involved with this link up, even though I've talked about my tattoo here before, it's just something I want to partake in :)
As you know I am Al's kidney donor. Feels like it's old news, especially here, but the story never changes my passion for organ donation so I use every chance I can to talk about our journey, in hopes that maybe just maybe someone will consider being a donor, whether it be organs or blood, living or deceased!!
On the topic of tattoos. I enjoy seeing tattoos, I just was never going to get one. When I gave Al his kidney; I knew there were going to be scars involved. I was relieved that the process of removing a kidney has gotten a lot easier since his dad donated to him 20 years ago. At that point when you had a kidney removed, it was through your back, the incision was about 6 inches long and they had to spread your ribs. Can I say OUCH!?When I donated, they told me that it would be done laparoscopically and then there would be an incision that was the size of my surgeon's fist for the removal of the kidney...sign me up right?? The scars would be thin little lines and barely noticeable when they healed, but I didn't want them to just "disappear". I wanted them to be showcased. How better to do that than to get a tattoo around them? Oh wait, I said I would never get a tattoo? Well, what's the most sensible way to show why you "never say never" well, of course it's to get a HUGE first tattoo! I think the artist that inked me thought I was a little nuts when I showed him what I wanted, and  then told him it was my first tattoo; but it meant something to me and because of that, I was determined to get it done. And, do I need to mention I pushed an 8 pound, 9 ounce baby out without drugs AND recovered from a kidney removal with no pain meds? I could handle a tattoo. And I *did* handle it, on the outside anyway, I smiled the whole time, but man, it didn't feel that great to get it! It was a constant scrape at my skin with a razor blade sensation that didn't let up for 2 hours! I walked out with art on my abdomen to showcase the scars that I proudly display. And the point is: "Be a Donor!"

.