"Contemporary Connections: The Farming of Bones and Birthmark Stigma"

Parents support their child by getting tattooed replica's of her birthmark

"Honey-Rae Phillips was born with a harmless but disfiguring birthmark." 

    Honey-Rae's wonderfully supportive and understanding parents, Adam and Tanya Phillips,  decided to each have of their legs tattooed with a replica of little Honey-Rae's birthmark. They did this as a sign of their love and acceptance of their perfect little girl's strawberry birthmark.  They didn't want Honey-Rae to ever feel as though she were different from anyone else. They want her to feel loved and accepted for who she is. They never want her to feel discouraged or different from others. By accepting and supporting their little girl they hope that she will gain the self-confidence she'll need as she grows up.  

In "The Farming of Bones" the character Felice has a highly visible birthmark upon her face which although she attempts to keep covered when in the presence of others, she is unable to escape.  

“MiMi’s face grew sad and serious as she observed the other women, especially Felice, a young woman....Felice, a young housemaid, had a beet-colored birthmark like a mustache over her lip.  She was reasonably pretty, but the birthmark was all you saw when you looked at her face.” (FB, 61).

Felice is able to find love and acceptance from the man she has sworn herself to, Joel. Although she is unable to escape the judgement of others who are unaccepting of her unique beauty, more specifically Joel’s father Kongo. Kongo is extremely upset that his son (and only child) has devoted himself to Felice and he does everything in his power to discourage and dissolve their relationship. Kongo’s efforts prove to be a waste of time because when Joel dies, he dies loving Felice. Sadly for Felice she is left alone to deal with the loss.  

Unfortunately, this form of "marked" separation of those who may look different from “the norm” is not uncommon today. Thankfully, there are people like Adam and Tanya Phillips who are there not only to support their daughter, Honey-Rae, but advocate for those like her- beautifully imperfect.

Felice’s "marked" difference is what causes her to be alienated by many of those around her. The Mayo Clinic describes a birthmark as being "common and usually harmless" (medically) but fails to mention the mental distress an individual with a birthmark may feel or go through if not supported by loved ones.