At a time of year when far too many people are being reminded of their broken families, with generation gaps accentuated by devastating absences of empathy and understanding, coupled with a divorce rate that makes bitterness the norm, I really liked this story of family togetherness that my friend KayLeigh sent me, and I’d like to share it as my “Christmas Eve Message”, to the extent that I have one.

KayLeigh has wanted to get a facial tattoo for a bit over a year now, but wasn’t entirely sure what she wanted. When she recently saw Kat Von D’s stars, she fell in love with the idea and knew something in that vein was right for her. She didn’t jump right in and do it, but after debating it for a long while to make sure she really wanted it, she had her tattoo artist Jane Hazard draw up the design.

The part of the story though that I really like is that her mother, a purchase manager at a control panel company, recently got a promotion and wanted to celebrate — she’s got lots of tattoos already, and had been eyeing a swirly facial tattoo for herself… So the timing was perfect, and as she put it, “most mother-daughters go shopping, we get tattooed!”

Both KayLeigh and her mother live in a small town “where everyone knows everyone and news travels fast”, so it must be nice to have each other’s support — they’re definitely already encountering some resistance to their decision. Too often parents and kids are at odds over what could easily be a bonding experience, and it’s very nice to hear a story that reflects a positive experience.