The day Taylor Williams turned 18, she got a tattoo of the phrase “keep on keeping on,” with a sun and moon underneath it.

Each aspect of the sophomore’s tattoo means something: The quote is her mother’s favorite, and the sun and moon symbolize her parents. But her ink is just one physical representation of how important her family is to her.

“My mom is my sun and my dad is my moon just because they’re always both watching over me,” Williams said. “Being far away from them and home, I just like having that mentality.”

She said the location of the tattoo has meaning within itself. Williams’ tattoo runs along her spine, where she has a scar from a surgery she underwent in seventh grade.

Courtesy of Taylor Williams

“It reminds me that yeah, I do have a scar, but I also have this beautiful quote next to it,” Williams said.

Although she doesn’t see the tattoo every day, just knowing it’s there has inspired her to keep on keeping on.

Williams got her second tattoo with Tyler Smith, also a sophomore at SU. They both have Keith Haring’s “dancing men” tattoos on their ankles from spending their summer together at a week-long inclusive summer camp for young adults with Down syndrome.

The sophomore said she plans to get more tattoos in the future. She’s always searching on Pinterest for ideas on what her next one could be.

Courtesy of Taylor Williams

“I look at my first tattoo compared to my most recent one, and I like each one more and more as I get them,” Williams said.

Due to her low pain tolerance, Williams said she wants to only get small, delicate tattoos that only take a few minutes.

But the stories are what ultimately draw her in.

“Each tattoo represents a stage in my life that I have gone through,” Williams said. “They just always remind me of something from that moment that motivated me to get it.”

Published on December 4, 2017 at 10:45 pm

Contact Raven: rarentas@syr.edu