Being a bridesmaid is something every girl wants to be at some point in her life, I was asked twice as a little girl, but aged 19 I'm still yet to walk down that aisle prior to the bride. I can't even say it's "always a bridesmaid, never a bride" because it's more like "never a bridesmaid, never a bride".
A few months ago, my brother announced his engagement. This time, I wasn't going to let being a bridesmaid fall through my fingertips... my first words after Congratulations were "bagsy being a bridesmaid" the seed had been planted, and in July I shall be in my first wedding.
I've always been the child to get detention, get my phone taken off me, break bones, get piercings, shave my hair and the latest craze - getting tattoos. Now you wouldn't think that any of this would be a problem in a wedding... but I may have forgotten to mention the fact the ceremony will take place in a catholic church.
Which is where I'm at now. All piercings have to be removed, and any visible tattoos have to be covered up during the wedding. I've never said I'm a catholic, I've never abided by any rules, but to "fit into" a world I never want to be a part of, I have to hide who I am. We are in the 21st century now, and a lot of things are changing. Or am I completely missing the point?
From a quick search of Google I found this quote... "Surely tattoo marks on the body are unseemly, if not actually offensive to God's temple." I'm also pretty sure that whoever wrote this can't understand the reasons for me getting a tattoo, and that I didn't get it just to offend "God".
The main tattoo that is the issue is the two swallows on my back, which mean "The darkness always turns to light", it's not exactly "God you are evil". My brother has told me that the 'Priest will not allow me to be a bridesmaid if I have tattoos or piercings'. Pretty sure that's a lie, but we'll go with it...Weddings supposedly bring the family together, (maybe with a few family dramas but still) they are times of love and happiness, and all the attention will be on the Bridge and Groom.
I can't imagine the Priest stopping the ceremony and ordering me to leave, can you? I respect Christians, but I'll never have a faith. I was once asked by my ex boyfriend's dad, "Why do we celebrate Easter?" to which I replied, "I don't know, but there's chocolate".
From what I know about the Bible, God made the world, he put Adam and Eve on the planet first, what If he'd made them have markings on their skin? It would then be okay for me to be a tattooed bridesmaid. Unfortunately that's not the case.
The world is full of different kinds of people, small or short, fat or thin, tattoed or pierced. I might be wrong, but is it right to hold onto all these traditions, when the world has changed so much since they were first created? We should find new traditions, and accept everyone for who they are. Isn't that what "God" wanted in the first place?