Sandi L. Boucher explains the personal and cultural symbolism of her custom tattoo. She describes that her Ojibwe spirit name means "Red Thunderbolt Woman," the central loon represents her loon clan and active nature, fallen and large eagle feathers represent deceased parents and her children respectively, a small fallen feather commemorates a daughter she lost at age 20, and four beads in black, red, yellow, and white represent the colors of man and the teaching of unity. She says she got the large bicep tattoo as part of healing after losing her mother and invites viewers to share their own symbols of strength.
Questions this video answers
Red Thunderbolt Woman
Loon clan (represented by a loon taking flight on the tattoo)
On her bicep
Her parents, who are deceased
Her children (both adults)
Chapters
Hi, my name is Sandy Boucher, and welcome back to my world. For those of you who follow me on Facebook, the Honorary Indian Group, I promised you today that I was going to do something different. I promised that I was going to answer a question that gets asked to me all the time, and that's what I'm going to do. So the one question I get asked over and over and over, and I don't mind, don't get me wrong, but the one question I get asked on a regular basis is the significance of my tattoo. It's obvious to those that see it that it's a custom design and it's small, so they like to ask me what it means, and I wanted to share that story with you, and I think by the end of this, you'll understand why. So it is a custom design. As you noticed, in the the main part of the tattoo is a red thunderbolt. My Ojibwe spirit name, translated into English, means red thunderbolt woman. The elder that gave me my name explained to me that I am the human manifestation of that split second in time when the thunder sounds exactly as the lightning strikes. I would like to think that means I'm memorable. It definitely means I'm not subtle. That is me. My spirit name. In the middle of the tattoo, you notice a bird. It's a loon. I am said to be a member of the loon clan. The easiest way to explain that is I tell people it's kind of like a horoscope thing where each of the clans had a different function in the community to ensure that the community thrived and survived. The loons were said to be the speakers of the community, the politicians. Do you think I suit my career or what? Now, if you notice on my tattoo, the loon is actually taking flight. Normally, when you see a loon in a postcard or a picture, it's sitting passively on a lake. There's very little that's passive about me. So my loon is taking flight. He's taking action, and that's what I do. Now, in Ojibwe culture, there is no higher honor than an eagle feather. To receive an eagle feather is the ultimate honor. To the top of my tattoo, you see two small, fallen eagle feathers. They represent my parents who have both gone on to Spirit World. They're fallen because my parents are deceased. And the size represents the distance to Spirit World. To the bottom of my tattoo, two huge, beautiful eagle feathers that represent my children, both strong, empowered adults in their own right. Now, to the side, one small Fallen feather to represent the daughter I lost to Cribdath when I was just 20. And to the side, four beads in the four traditional colors. Black, red, yellow, and white. The colors are said to represent the colors of man. And our teaching says that when the four colors come together and share their teachings, that's when the world finally comes together. That's my job. That's my destiny, and that's why I'm doing what I do today. Now, for those of you who know me personally, you know that getting my tattoo was a huge part of my healing after I lost my mother. When my mother was alive, she often told me to remember, to always be who I was, to be authentic, no matter where I stood or who I stood beside. Well, my mother's not here to say that to me anymore. So after I lost her and she moved on to Spirit World, I got my tattoo. I got it on my bicep to remember how strong I am, because she wasn't here to tell me anymore. And I got it huge. So it's almost physically impossible to hide who I am. That's my tattoo. So every single time I look in the mirror, I'm reminded not only of the woman who raised me and her amazing teachings, but the woman I am and how strong I am in my own right. That's my story, my tattoo. But as I was thinking of sharing that story with you, I couldn't help thinking, what do you use to remind you of how strong you are or how unique you are? Perhaps it's a special item that someone you love gave to you. Perhaps it's something your children made for you. Perhaps it's a tattoo. I would love to know what works for you. So if you don't mind, take a minute and leave a comment on my website and leave a comment on the video. I would love to know what works for you, what reminds you how amazing you are. Thanks for watching. I hope you have an amazing day and don't give anyone the power to make it anything less. It's your day, so enjoy it. Take care. Bye. Bye.
