Cancer Sucks revised

I saw it on Instagram it was a small tattoo, on the side of her ribs. It said “through every dark night there is a brighter day.” Mimi has what I like to call the typical girl tattoo. She had all the symptoms. Cheesy quote. Check. Cheap calligraphy. Check. It’s on her ribs. Check. There was no reason for her to get a tattoo. Her only motivation was she had money and an afternoon to waste. It was a waste of money but people would say “you only live once, right? It’s my body I’ll do what I want with it.”  That didn’t set well with me because I was raised in a Christian family, and tattoos are forbidden. They are seen as rebellions, sinful and a disconnection to God. 

My first impression of my friend Mimi is that she looked like she cared too much about herself. She seemed like the kind of girl that wouldn’t leave the house without having her makeup done. She needs to have her high heels and skirt or else she would need to stay in the house. She dressed like she would fit in with the plastics from the movie Mean Girls. Her appearance was not an adequate representation of herself. She is the complete opposite; Mimi’s a person who doesn’t take herself too seriously. After I got to meet her I realized Mimi is a kind person, she had a positive vibe.

A specific verse in Leviticus 19:28 says “Do not cut your bodies for the dead or put tattoo marks on yourselves. I am the Lord” It is very clear that God is against tattoos. In the time the book of Leviticus was written, tattoos were a pagan practice. So it was viewed as worshiping another God.  It is one of the fundamental beliefs that God comes first. Exodus 20:3 “You shall have no other gods before me.” Also in 1 Corinthians 6:19-20 it says "Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God?  You are not your own; 20 you were bought at a price.  Therefore honor God with your body." This verse is about how respecting you body and how that actually means respecting God. It is a sign of respect to God since he gave his son, Jesus. Putting tattoo on your body is the equivalent to parents working everyday to pay for college and the student slacks off and fails every class.

Mimi understood this because she is also Christian; the old school Christians thought something must be wrong with her. She must be leaving the Christian way of life; they judged her before they knew her story. When people think of tattoos the first thing that comes to mind is gang members, alcohol, and past relationships. They quickly jumped to conclusions; they thought their perfect little angel was rebelling. At first I didn’t understand why she would get a tattoo; she seemed like the perfect Christian girl. She had it all a happy life, supporting family, and she was healthy.

“I’m trying to recuperate from my mother’s death. Every night is a struggle, seeing that reminds me it’s going to get better the next day.”

They didn’t understand she was going through hell. She put up a front, but on the inside she was slowly dying. She told me her mother, Benny, died from cancer. I quickly put the pieces of the puzzle together; Mimi was diagnosed with cancer last year. She has been in and out of the hospital. Her motivation was to be like her mother, a fighter. Seeing a picture of her mother reminded her to keep trying to get better and do everything to be happy. So she tattooed something her mother used to say “through every dark night, there is a brighter day.” Her mom is a big part of her life.

Just how I judged Mimi when I first met her I judged her tattoo. I was wrong twice; I can say I’ve learned not to be so judgmental. I now have reconsidered what the verses mean; I think God is more focused about our heart than our body. Our souls go to heaven not our bodies.