I find it interesting that quite often people's first tattoo tends to be something meaningful. After that, for many, it becomes less meaningful. It goes from the tattoo of the person you love the most to emoji or food. In other words, something super person to something 'cool,' 'fun', and 'oh wells.'
I have always wanted to get a tattoo of something. The problem is, I just haven't learned what that something is yet. For me, I want a tattoo to be something meaningful. A word, phrase, or a symbol that connects to me. I want my first tattoo to be something I can see, that will serve as a positive reminder for me. In the moment of suffering, I want to see and have it be a positive reminder on my body.
The problem has been that the meaningful phrases and reminders I want for me have often changed.
Yet, certain things have remained constant, and there is where I am drawing my answers from.
Surrender is number 1 on the list of words I would consider tattooing (is tattooing even a proper word?). I do consider the possibility of what surrender could be perceived as by others.
I envision a situation where you are being attacked, where I choose to raise my hand and shout, "I surrender." Looking at it from a war perspective, surrender is seen as a bad thing. It can be associated with giving up. Giving up is then associated with defeat, and losing. Not a feeling we like experiencing.
Another thing that comes to mind is a Christian song I listened to while attending an American Christian school in Lisbon, which I think is called "I surrender all." The principle rings true.
Surrender as I have come to learn is to let go of what you think the outcome should be. It is to release the possibility you are clinging on to, and welcome whatever can be. For the longest time, I thought surrender meant giving up, but it turns out surrendering can also mean hoping for the best while releasing the need to control the outcome.
On a battlefield where you are fighting against yourself, it is the need to release that need to fight, and allow yourself to be free.
All the tension in our bodies begins to be released when the fight ceases to exist.
Every time that I have set the intention to surrender positively, I have felt the internal pressure being released.
The reason I say surrender positively is because of the negative association we can have with surrendering. It is not losing a battle. It is about seeing that the battle is actually not needed. It is about coming to the conclusion that life is for you, not against you. Whatever the outcome may be, it is already for the greater good.
Reflective Question
What word would you like to have tattooed on your body (or on your mind)?
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