Before moving to San Diego, I spent my last night in NY with my brother and his daughter, Gabby. My niece was 4 years old at the time and we spent the evening chasing fireflies. At one point she turns to me and says "I've never seen a dead firefly. I wonder if they live forever and never break their hearts?"
I had recently gone through a bad breakup, which I had thought Gabby was largely ignorant of. I was touched that she had picked up on things and surprised at her depth of understanding. And I was mostly in awe and appreciation of a 4-year-old's ability to say something so unintentionally profound.
My niece is, and always has been, one of my favorite people. About a year after moving to San Diego and missing Gabby, I got this tattoo to always keep her close to my heart when I'm not able visit NY.
The tattoo was done by Paul Vandenberg at Chapter One Tattoo in Ocean Beach.
February 24, 2015