tattoos??

I am thinking about getting a tattoo. I currently do not have any tattoos. My second degree is in African American & African Studies. I love African art,  specifically West African symbols. Below are the two symbols that I admire the most, and I am thinking about getting, along with the meaning behind each one.

To the left  is the Sankofa symbol. We must go back and reclaim our past so we can move forward; so we understand why and how we came to be who we are today." The Akan (Ghanaian vernacular) word, Sankofa means "one must return to the past in order to move forward." The symbol of Sankofa is that of a bird whose head is faced in the opposite direction of its body. This is emphasising on the fact that even though the bird is advancing, it periodically makes it a point to examine/ return to it's past, since this is the only way for one to have a better future.  This symbol to the left is another symbol of Sanfoka.Some also interpret Sankofa to mean, no matter how far away one travels they must always return home. However Sankofa is interpreted, the basic and important meaning still lies; one's past is an important aspect of one's future. So in order to make the best of one's future, one must visit one's past.  Every time I look at this symbol, it makes me think of my my past, good and bad  and how everything in my life has shaped and molded me into the person that I am today.  I have grown and learned a lot over the years and I am proud of the woman I am today. It also makes me, thinks twice and analyze the situation before acting.


To the right is the symbol GYE NYAME which means "No one lives who saw its beginning and no one will live to see it's end, except God." Gye Nyame (except god) is revered as one of highest Akan spiritual symbols. It is a symbol that has many interpretations. "Except God" simply means that one recognizes the supremacy of God and, in essence, one is not afraid of anything--except the Supreme Being. One should not be hindered from doing anything except what God forbids. Gye Nyame also means that one recognizes that God is omnipotent and omnipresent, that God is above all. The Supreme Being is the creator of the world and all things that are in it. The Supreme Being controls all things in the world as well as the powers that operate the world. This symbol is in a way linked to the above symbol because it was God who has brought me through bad situation and has showered me with good situations and opportunities. God who continues to bless me and guide me throughout my life. Without Him, I would not be where I would be. I praise him everyday and in advance for everything He is doing in my life. Even when I am having the worse day, I know I am not alone because he is always beside me walking beside me and through everything with me.

I DON'T KNOW WHICH ONE I LIKE MORE, I HAVE ADMIRED BOTH SYMBOLS FOR THE PAST YEAR NOW, AND THE NEXT QUESTION WOULD BE WHERE WOULD I PLACE THEM? SHOULD I GET BOTH TATTOOS SINCE I LIKE THEM BOTH? I AM THINKING ABOUT MY WRIST AND MY LOWER ABDOMEN AREA.  I WANT THE TATTOO KIND OF CURVED ON MY WRIST. BOTH TATTOOS I WANT TO BE SMALL, I MEAN I AM A FEMALE SO I DO NOT WANT ANY LARGE TATTOOS ON MY BODY. NO OFFENSE TO ANYONE WHO DOES HAVE LARGE TATTOOS. ITS JUST NOT MY CUP OF TEA. IF ANYONE KNOWS OF A GOOD TATTOO ARTIST/PARLOR THAT IS REASONABLE IN PRICE, LICENCED, AND IN THE HAMPTON ROADS AREA, PLEASE HIT ME UP AND LET ME KNOW!!