i carry your heart with me literary tattoo

I technically didn’t snap this photograph-my husband did. However, I didn’t want to forget this day when I-in a romantic expression of love, had this quote from my favorite E. E. Cummings poem tattooed on my back. As I’m sure I mentioned, my husband is about to embark on a two year extended tour in Asia-being the person that I am-I wanted to do something a bit dramatic to express my love and to mark our ten year anniversary (later this month.)

When I first read this poem, my husband was in Iraq and Cummings’ words rang so true to me, I felt as if my own heart had penned the words. I’ve been mulling the idea of getting this quote on my back since then, and when we learned of his next military assignment I initially planned on having it done while he was away-to later surprise him.  However I decided that sooner would be better (I’m not a fan of putting things off) and so I did it today. I also thought the timing was perfect!

i carry your heart with me

i carry your heart with me (i carry it in
my heart) i am never without it (anywhere
i go you go, my dear; and whatever is done
by only me is your doing, my darling)

i fear
no fate (for you are my fate, my sweet) i want
no world (for beautiful you are my world, my true)
and it’s you are whatever a moon has always meant
and whatever a sun will always sing is you

here is the deepest secret nobody knows
(here is the root of the root and the bud of the bud
and the sky of the sky of a tree called life; which grows
higher than soul can hope or mind can hide)
and this is the wonder that’s keeping the stars apart

i carry your heart (i carry it in my heart)

-Edward Estlin Cummings

It was quite a nice day. The tattoo artist who did this tattoo and my lyrical “graceful dancing” one is a very talented gentleman named Neil Stavely. I also got to share the day with my good friend Noelle who had her daughter’s initial-the letter “D” tattooed on her wrist.

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Nicole Olea

Nicole Olea’s love language is communication. She does this best using her keyboard as a freelance copywriter and editor. Creative and resilient with high-level experience in social media management, content creation, and eCommerce marketing, Nicole Olea was a professional volunteer, sharing her skills with various non-profit organizations who paid her in hugs. For the last 20 years, she’s lived a quasi-nomadic life, moving across the country and the Atlantic with her active-duty husband and their three kids. She’s awkwardly stumbling toward her goal of becoming a saint. She’s got God-sized dreams and wants you to have them too!