Matching Tattoos
If you’ve known one of the lovely ladies from the Scissortail Squad for very long, you may notice that we share something and not just a love for travel and food. We share matching tattoos (well, almost, but you’ll have to keep reading to find out why)
Our friendship started in Oklahoma (Our Story | Scissortail Squad) and the state bird is a scissor-tailed flycatcher. If you have ever seen one in the “wild,” then you know of the beauty and grace it shows as it seems to effortlessly soar across the sky.
After years (and I do mean years) of discussing everyone’s comfort level with, not only getting a tattoo, but a matching one, we knew we wanted something that would remind us of each other, but also pay tribute to where it all started. It would be Sarah S. and Heather’s first tattoo and there was a bit of nervousness to fully commit.
Of course, we all had different thoughts when it came to what the design should look like, how big it would be and where we would put it. Ultimately, the fantastic artist in our group – Sarah N. – designed our beautiful scissortail flycatcher. We each sat with the design for a few days, looking at it and putting it on different parts of our body to get a feel for what it would look like and how we would like a permanent image in that spot.
For me, I wanted the tattoo to be visible, not only to myself, but to others as well. I wanted to be able to share the meaning behind it when asked. I ended up choosing my left wrist. That way I could easily see it if I was having a rough day and needed some immediate encouragement. We each choose a different part of our body to display the tattoo, a place that when we saw it would remind us of the friendship bond we have, help us remember that we are not alone, and, of course, looked good. I am also the one whose tattoo is different. I chose to have my scissortail without feet as a symbol of me flying away from the squad (as I had recently moved to Ohio).
So, one November evening in 2016, we headed out to Tulsa Tattoo Co. in Tulsa’s Rose District. With slight panic, excitement, nervousness and each other, we supported each other as we got our tattoos. I won’t lie, it didn’t hurt as much as I thought it would, but it wasn’t pleasant either. The long lines of the tail were the worst for me. We reminded each other to take deep breaths, distracted each other with funny stories and talks of where we were going to get dessert afterwards and ooh-ed and ahh-ed as each tattoo took shape.
I love this connection I have to my squad. One that reminds me of the love and support I have. One that reminds me to pray for them. And one that I am proud to tell the story as to why I have a “bird” tattoo on my wrist.
