3 Cats & Some Ink: Guest Post by Danusia

“Ink” is putting pen to paper, an octopus defense, a nerdy stain on shirt pocket, and a tattoo. Not “the plane, the plane, boss!” Tattoo, but a permanent (as in forever, as some of us go) declaration of some vision to the world on your skin. Various cultures have practiced this art throughout history. Often, these markings proclaim identity, membership, and ideas. As I have grown, my identity, my membership, and my ideas have evolved. Endurance, survival, and wisdom can be gained from such evolution. As an undergrad dressed in Ralph Lauren attire, I would have shuddered, condescendingly, at an arm with ink. In medical school, I was purely concerned with the physiological results of tattooing, the histology, the complications. In residency and private practice, tattoos were “O.K.” on others, but NOT on me. On and on, ideas evolve.