Aang's Blue Arrows

"There's no meaning without pain."

-Nana Osaki, Nana

The thing that is most special to me... maybe it's kind of wierd... but the thing that means the most are my tatoos. I got my tatoos when I mastered Airbending.

Before I got them, Monk Gyatso explained the process, and that it would be very painful, but that "There is no meaning without pain."

And, it was a very long process. I had to purify my skin from head to toe for the three days prior to my "initiation" and I was to fast and drink nothing but water for those three days.

Then the day awaited came. I was still a little afraid, but I remembered, what doesn't kill you makes you stronger right? I laid on my belly and waited, hopefully, yet still dreading the pain.

When the time came, my Airbending masters came in, but the only one I was really glad to see was Gyatso. He was like my father. I don't remember much of my real parents, so what I do remember of my younger years of childhood were of Gyatso: teaching me, reading me stories, eating fruit pies together. All these memories came flooding back, as the first strokes of pain started.

The arrows would start at the center of my back and trace up the back of my neck and end at my forehead; down both arms to my wrists; and both legs to my ankles. A sharp knife dug into the skin on my back, and I winced and shut my eyes.

"It's ok, Aang. It'll hurt, but we must cut deep for the tatoos to keep. This is only the beginning, you must prepair yourself for more pain," explained Gyatso.

"Ok," I muttered through clenched teeth.

My eyes fluttered open, only for a moment, but just in time to see the monk set down the bloody blade. "We must apply the ink now. It will be a lot more painful, because we're applying it to your open wounds," they told me.

I shut my eyes hard again, desperately trying to imagine myself somewhere else, but all I could think about was the pain engulfing all of my limbs. Tears began to pour out of my eyes like waterfalls, and I could no longer hold back my gasps of pain.

"Am I shameful for crying, Gyatso?" I asked through my tears.

"It is alright to cry, Aang. It reminds us that we are still human," he assured, as he grabbed my hand so I could hold it tightly. He gave me a strip of leather to bite down on; it made the pain a little easier to bear.

And suddenly, I felt the pain subside a little. No one was touching my wounds. I laid there and breathed heavily; it was finally over, for the most part. The monks wrapped my wounds in bandages, and told me that it would take a few days to recover.

And so I slept. For days, and days. I slept like I hadn't slept in years, and it's probably the most I've ever slept. After about 10 days, I awoke, and felt no pain. I stood up on my wobbly legs, and walked slowly to the wash basin. I looked in the mirror at the bandages on my head, and carefully began to unwrap them. I was almost afraid of what the marks would look like; afraid that now, there was no turning back. The arrows would be permanant.

As I unwrapped the last of those bandages, I looked in the mirror at the bright blue arrow upon my forehead. But, I was happy that there was no turning back now. I had a mark that told everyone who I was, and it showed that I was proud to be an Airbender. I was glad that I would remember the ritual for the rest of my life, because as Gyatso said, "There is no meaning without pain."