Question: Why do you continue to hang a door knocker through your nose? It’s not a criticism, for I used to have one, too, but I am curious.
Answer: When I first had my septum pierced, it was to bring who I am inside up to the surface. That gesture still holds true, perhaps even more so now. During chemotherapy, I had to remove all the metal. In that moment, I felt like the hospital had taken away everything I had done to grow into the person I had become. It was an awful thing I felt inside. After treatment, two of the four never went back in due to infection problems during treatment. I still have a slight bit of anxiety about them not being there, even five years later.
Things are just things, for the most part. I understand I should not be upset if it had to go away, but there is a symbolism to the things we bring into our lives; the appearance I put to my exterior represents how I fit to the world, how I see myself walking through it. Many people think it should be removed, not for my own good, but simply because they are uncomfortable with it. I suppose that is a real point behind me wearing it: who I am and how I live will make many people uncomfortable. I am not the status quo. A ring through my nose helps to say, right up front in the first instant, “Hi! I am not you.”
March is question month: ask your questions here.
gryphon's hole 