Fortunately because, during a brief sojourn into Borders, I met Takeshi, who was visiting from Boston. And he had quite a few tattoos.
Takeshi offered up this neck piece for the Tattoosday audience:
The words "Hold On" refer to the song of the same name, by rock band Good Charlotte, from their album The Young and The Hopeless.
The song is an anti-suicide anthem, and the lyrics relate to the feelings that one battles at a time when suicide seems to be the answer:
This world, this world is cold
But you don’t, you don’t have to go
You’re feeling sad you’re feeling lonely
And no one seems to care
You’re mother’s gone and your father hits you
This pain you cannot bare
But we all bleed the same way as you do
We all have the same things to go thru
Hold on...if you feel like letting go
Hold on...it gets better than you know
Takeshi is a huge Good Charlotte fan and has strong feelings about the subject ever since his childhood friend from Japan, who he has known since they were both very young boys, attempted to take his own life.
The good news is that this is not a memorial tattoo. Takeshi's friend did not succeed and has recovered from the despair that led him to the edge of life.
This tattoo is dedicated to his friend who, when he first saw what Takeshi had done, was moved to tears. The piece serves as a source of strength and inspiration that remains a daily reminder to keep holding on, and to live life fully.
This tattoo was created by Bob Vanderberg in 2006 when he was a guest artist at Chameleon Tattoo & Body Piercing in Boston. Vanderberg left his gig in Michigan and has since joined the staff at Chameleon. Previous Tattoosday posts featuring work from the shop appeared here.
Thanks to Takeshi for sharing his tattoo with us here. We look forward to possibly seeing more of his work in the future.
Below is a video of Good Charlotte's "Hold On":