Tattoos at Dimond High School are becoming more prominent. Many students either have, or are planning on getting one when they turn 18. “I’m looking forward to college,” Dimond High School senior Brea Walker said. “I want a peace on earth tattoo really bad—on my wrist.” The desire for a tattoo not only has to do with its looks, but with its meaning. Aaron Dunlap, a senior, got a tattoo near his elbow in Arizona when he was 16. “It didn’t hurt, really,” he said, “I do want more, though.” Dunlap’s family was very approving of the tattoo he got, as it is a sort of family tradition that goes back to the years of his grandfather. Many of the men in his family share the tattoo mark, and wear it proudly, as it is a type of bond they will always have. Those with a tattoo are likely to get more done. The tattooing of ones body is said to be a very addicting feeling. When asked if he would like another tattoo—aside from the two he already has— Clark Babbitt, a senior, said he would like more. “The pain and sort of rush is extremely addicting.,” he says. Kelsey Verduin, a senior at Dimond, has always wanted a tattoo—and for her seventeenth birthday, it is what she plans on getting. “I don’t want just one,” she says, enthusiastically “I want a ton. I think they’re a great way to express one’s self”. Though some claim tattoos are just simply a form of expression, others agree they can be inappropriate or a distraction. “There are a lot of reasons to have a tattoo,” Dale Evern, Freshman House Principal, said. “For some it’s an expression of art, for others, a memory.” The thought of a child bearing a tattoo does not settle with Evern. “I think, personally, that at a minimum you should be 18 to make a decision that will stay with you for the rest of your life,” Evern said. Joey Towslee, a senior, says that he does “not like tattoos if they are pointless. There should be a significant meaning to something that will last forever”. As most people tend to agree, tattoos are not a bad choice, if done properly and with a good cause. To have a memory always with you is an important thing to some, and a tattoo is their way in sharing it.