Yesterday was a right of passage for our big girl: Keana got her ears pierced. She had mentioned it on and off before, but something in the last week clicked in her head and she was pretty determined to get it done. She talked to Sarah about it and they decided it was a fine time for such a thing. I didn’t really mind either way, but I did want to make sure it was done right. Sarah had her ears pierced with the standard “gun in the mall” and I had mine done (much later) at this hippy joint in Santa Cruz with a needle, so we had both experiences to compare. Ultimately we decided the needle was the safest, best option, and we began to research places in Fresno. We ended up at High Class Tattoo and Piercing, mostly because they seemed knowledgeable and no one else had a piercer working, and there was no delaying this event.

Keana was beaming with excitement. I’ve included video and photos below to fully capture the moment, but here’s the basic story. Prior to leaving, we tried to give Keana an idea of what might happen and how it might feel. We were pretty honest about the pain and she was still really excited to go. So once we found the place, we all hopped in the car and headed out. When we pulled up I saw a group of five guys covered in tattoos and piercings smoking out front, and only realized at that point that it might be kind of weird for the girls, so reassured them it was safe and that even though these guys looked different than maybe what they were used to, they were really nice. And it was true (thankfully).

We asked a few basic questions and John the piercer pulled out some small rhinestone earrings to choose from. There were surgical steel hoops as well, but Keana wanted the sparkle (gasp, surprise). She initially wanted the blue sparkly ones, but they weren’t sterilized yet, so instead of waiting 30 minutes for that to happen, she opted for the “diamonds”. We headed back to a room, he sterilized the area on each lobe, marked the spot, and had us check. I suggested we center it a little more in case she wanted to stretch them later in life, he agreed, and made the adjustments. He told her to take a deep breath in and out, and I could tell by the small amount of liquid pooling in her eyes that Keana had just had her first piercing. She was so brave. Her lip didn’t even quiver a bit. I could tell she was toughing it out, but she never cried or flinched. He got the earring in and moved to the other side. Keana seemed ever so slightly more apprehensive, knowing now how much it was going to hurt, but Sarah and I reminded her to breathe, and Sarah held her hand. Again, a hint of tears, but none dropped, and it was done. A big smile spread across her face when we asked if she wanted to see. Upon looking in the mirror, I could tell she was pretty impressed. She thought she looked beautiful and so did we.

It was a moment when I was proud and sort of sad at the same time. I didn’t want her to feel like she needed earrings to be grown-up or pretty, but I didn’t want to be controlling or hinder her growth either. I think Sarah and I both wanted to support her in a decision that seemed right for her at this time, and I think it was a good little test in this first of many rights of passage.

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