Eight

"What is mankind that you are mindful of them,
    human beings that you care for them?"
Psalm 8:4 (NIV)

A few years ago, if you had asked me what I think about tattoos, I would have told you: "People can ink their bodies, but it's not for me."

A day after our son was born, my father (in-law) decided to add another tattoo to his body. He was such a proud grandfather (& father) and had our son's name tattooed across his left biceps, with a sun rising. It was an incredible statement of love!

He also had the names of his children tattooed on both sides of his chest. I'll never forget seeing him lie in the hospital bed, bare-chested, and those names exposed. His daughter's (my wife's) name written on his heart - literally.

After he passed away last July, we (my mother and brother-in-law, my wife, our son and I) sat in the lounge of his flat - absolutely desolate. Right there and then, it felt like something new was sprouting from the ashes of despair. It was time for a new chapter without him...it was a new dawn, like the one tattooed on his arm. We decided that the best way to honour him and keep his memory was to get a tattoo.

We decided that the number eight would be a suitable choice, seeing as that number represents new beginnings in the Bible. (The number carries so much more meaning and you can read about it here.)

With the help of a friend, I designed the tattoo above. The fish shape is intentional, for the early disciples of Jesus used a Greek acrostic, ICHTHYS: Iesous Christos Theou Yios Soter, i.e. Jesus Christ, Son of God, Saviour (For more on this click here. There's also proof that the early symbol representing Ichthys was a circle cut into 8 'pie pieces').

My father-in-law was a great fisherman and taught me how to fish. It's a memory I will always cherish!

The tattoo also represents how, in Jesus, heaven and earth collided and were brought together for good. Jesus' resurrection occurred on the eighth day and Christianity hinges on the fact that this event truly came to pass.

Other personal meanings:

• In 2008, my uncle passed away and that tragic moment set off a series of events that led me back to embracing the truth of the gospel.
• My wife and I got baptised together on 8 May 2016, born anew in water. 
• I was born in August, the 8th month of the year. 
• The house I grew up in was No. 8. 
• The zip code of the town I grew up in starts with and ends in the number 8. 
• Eight years after becoming an adult, I met the love of my life....
• I love music and an octave is made up of eight notes. 
• Sunlight takes around eight minutes to reach the earth.
• Some of my favourite passages in the Bible are numbered with an eight (Romans 8, Luke 8, Psalm 8).
  

My wife and I finally got the tattoo eight months after her dad passed away. His favourite number was 7. The next number, marking the chapter without him, is.... you guessed it. 

God loves us, with or without tattoos. I always wanted to have a good enough reason to actually get a tattoo. After all, it stays on you for life, and therefore it must represent something that gives you a happy memory. This tattoo, as you can tell, is more complex as it holds so many different memories. It's a nod to my history and heritage, but also to my future and the legacy I want to leave: one where Jesus is the centre of it all.

(Thanks once again to one of my oldest friends, Peshy, who did an excellent job with tattooing both my wife and I! Go check out her tattoo studio Hola Papaya)