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The puhoro I am receiving is much like the one Illustrated at the top of this page. I have a thinner body and am less robust than the man who received that tattoo, so the design of my puhoro uses the same elements, but is tailored specifically for the volumes and forms of my body.

There are dynamic sweeping lines that represent waves and whirlpools. This is the core of the traditional puhoro pattern.

These swooping forms are set again a grid of pairs of vertical lines, called heke or ribs. These are inked in at the same time as the curved lines of the puhoro pattern. These heke create irregular geometric forms in the areas between the swooping forms of the puhoro pattern. All of these irregular shapes will be partially shaded in with a series of short, horizontal lines, called patika, which will then become the darker background that sets off the un-shaded puhoro waves and swirls.

That is, the pattern will really pop once the horizontal patika lines are inked in. This however, will only happened towards the end of the moko process.

You can see all of these elements in the finished puhoro illustrated above. This will let you understand where my moko is headed, while you see it develop and grow in pieces over the next week or so.

The shading comes last.

Overall, the process all takes place on my body. First Rangi sketches in the sweeping puhoro forms, using water-proof markers in various colors, moving my underwear this way and that to access all of my skin. Phil then carefully draws the pattern with red marker. He then grids off and adds the heke line in yellow. When he is done, the tattoo basically appears on my body.

Then, Phil painstakingly inks in each line in black, wiping off excess ink (and some blood) with a paper towel as he goes along. This wiping also partially removes some of the pattern drawn in marker. So, between periods of inking, Phil re-draws the pattern in blue marker, as needed, so he has clear lines to follow for the next inking.

What I have to do is position my body so he has the best access to any specific area he is working on. Then I have to hold still, have to manage and tolerate the pain, while minimizing any muscle twitching or body movement. Phil uses his free hand to stretch the skin (if needed) and to hold down my body and muscles, which he also does with both forearms, as needed. The forearm of his right inking hand also rests on my body to help steady his hand and the pen. Periodically, Phil sprays down areas of my skin with alcohol to remove ink and to disinfect. This feels great!

During the tattoo process, Phil has a lot of contact with my body, not unlike a massage. But at the heart of that physical contact is a sharp, piercing pain, which become worse as the day wears on—feeling a bit like a blow torch or hot knife by the end of the day. And some areas—so far the backs of my legs over the hamstrings, and the inner thighs, particularly closer to my groin—are distinctly more painful.

We start at 9 am and generally finish between 3:30 and 4:30 pm. The active inking—half in the morning, half in the afternoon—is about 5-6 hrs a day. I wear only my briefs, since sun floods into the moko pod, particularly in the afternoon. When we get to the spirals on my butt, I’ll be wearing less.

I get up to pee, drink, have a sugar snack periodically, then right back to the table. Between the morning and afternoon sessions, I have a quick lunch of crackers and cheese and an apple, sitting on the edge of the moko pod deck in the sun in my underwear. Basically, once I undress in the morning, I’m in my underwear the whole day.

When I’m facing the right way, there is a beautiful pastoral view out the sliding doors of the moko pod—across fields being restored to forest down to the Waiwhakaiho River. And R and B and reggae plays on the sound system, so I can also focus on the music and the beat. Sometimes I shoot close-up photos and video of Phil as he works. Sometimes we talk about our lives. All of those distractions are good.

At the end of every moko session—morning and afternoon—Phil sprays alcohol and a magical foam to remove ink and and disinfect. He then rubs on Tattoo Aftercare, a goop like vaseline, but a little thinner. Then I lie of paper towels for 10 minutes to compress the freshly-tattooed areas. The goop lets the paper towels peel off without sticking, usually with the tattoo pattern soaked into them in ink and plasma from my body. Then another layer of goop, and wrapping tightly in clear plastic film.

At the end of the day, I put on loose, elastic/draw-string, palm-print cotton pants, before I leave the moko pod. When I get home at the end of the day, the last part of my body we worked on swaddled in clear plastic film, I feel pretty drained. Gulp glasses of water. Heat up leftovers in the over. I write about my day as dinner heats. Then, remove the wrap. Take a hot shower. Cover the tattoos in disinfectant cream. Put on my loose cotton pants again, to protect furniture and sheets from tattoo ink.

Settle in for a bit of streaming, and then bed.

I’m still surprised by the tattoo when I take my pants off. As if I still had another layer to take off.

But I smile and feel joy when I look at it on my body.

Pain with a purpose. Part of the journey.