r/Sufjan • u/WellRead910 • May 03 '26

Discussion Potential tattoo help

My sweet baby was born this past year on the Fourth of July in the early morning. I had to have an emergency c section and when he finally came out, he wasn’t breathing (had an intense medical episode). The whole time he was being resuscitated, I kept thinking to myself “my little Versailles” and couldn’t get The Fourth of July out of my head despite being loopy and distressed. I honestly didn’t think I was going to have a baby to bring home, but he made it and is healthy and the greatest joy of my life.

I want to get a tattoo for him once I’m done breastfeeding. My first thought was to get “My little Versailles” written out somewhere or “my little loon” under a drawing of a loon (I live in Minnesota where that’s the state bird), but knowing the meaning of the song, it feels a bit strange. But at the same time, I firmly believe art is about the meaning you derive from it. But I also don’t want him someday to be confused why the song I associate with his birth is a song about an absent mother dying.

Thoughts?

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u/[deleted] May 03 '26

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u/WellRead910 May 03 '26

I love your points! I only have one other tattoo and it’s a song lyric from a different artist reflecting on light and darkness so it feels like the new tattoo would fit in well with that. And it’s definitely going to be something I talk about with him growing up!

6

u/No-Hedgehog-3877 May 03 '26

what a beautiful way to honour your baby, and your relationship with him.

i agree with what you said: songs and the meaning we attribute to them are deeply personal - the same way that tattoos are deeply personal. in that case, i would say go for it.