I was working at the mall, laughing at something and being weird when he walked by the tattoo shop. All of a sudden his client was more and more interested in getting a piercing. Me being me, and missing my job as a para, chose kindness instead of the dismissiveness he must experience in so many other encounters. We talked and I saw his aid. I stopped. For a second I couldn’t breathe. This giant man with kind eyes who spoke to a disabled man with respect and as a friend threw me for a loop. As a tattoo artist I had been around a lot of not so kind behavior. Being professional in the face of hate was a mask I learned long ago, even as it still slipped from time to time. Seeing him with a yankee hat on and a Tupac tshirt, I was intrigued. But I was working. I was moving and busy. So when my boss encouraged me to give him a shot as he kept coming back to the shop every few days adding onto his arm. Over and over again. Over $1400 worth of tattoo work done on his arm to be around me. And if you ask him, he’ll tell you it was worth every penny.
This video tells all... about 6 minutes in if you want to skip to the proposal!!! https://www.facebook.com/watch/live/?ref=watch_permalink&v=977747763518178