Tattoo with special meaning

[RocketMan]

Going thru family problems with sick child and wanted to show strength thru a new tattoo that says

LEARN TO DANCE IN THE RAIN

Can any one help me with this?

Thank You

[Shelley]

Have you read this?  http://www.chinese-forums.com/index.php?/topic/13435-how-to-post-and-how-translating-names-into-chinese-works/

 

I would not recommend you get a Chinese tattoo.

 

Why? why not have it in a language that the people you are hoping to share it with can understand.  Writing it in Chinese does not impart any kind of magic or special meaning, in fact the meaning usually gets lost in translation.

 

You run the danger of bad calligraphy and incorrect translation. Remember it is rare that the tattoo artist has any skills in Chinese and Chinese calligraphy.

 

Pick a nice font, a good colour and have it done in English ( if this is your language, I assume nothing )

 

As I always say before you ink think and think again.

[RocketMan]

Thank You for your insight but my wife wanted it this way. It would only be known by us since this medical problem is a terminal disease and we want our privacy

[Charlotte Chen]

I think you can say 怡然自得

But actually I agree with Shelley because this sentence in English is beautiful.

[jbradfor]

 

It would only be known by us

And 1.2 billion people that can read Chinese.

 

 

怡然自得

Note that this is a Chinese idiom that means something like "happy and content"; it's not a literal translation, but rather trying to get across the meaning in a way that is true Chinese.  To me, that is better, but I just think you should know, in case you really want a literal translation.

[Charlotte Chen]

In a literal translation, it can be 在雨中起舞 or 于雨中跳舞

Both 怡然自得 and 怡然自乐 mean something like "happy and content"

If you want the kid to be more active, you can also say 迎风而上 or 逆风而行

[Shelley]

If it was in English I don't understand how anyone will know the "special" meaning it has for the both of you. Unless you had mentioned it, I would never have known.

 

if I saw this as a tattoo on someone I would just think it obviously means some thing to that person. Also it depends on where you tattoo it, somewhere discrete and it won't be visible to all and sundry, but you would know it was there and in private you could see it or when you felt comfortable in the company you are with. So maybe on a shoulder or top of the arm or something like that.

 

I think you will not be able to get an exact translation in Chinese, so if the exact meaning is important then I think this is another good reason to go for it in English.

[renzhe]

Short poetic phrases like this one simply can not be translated. By anyone.

The closest you can get is some rough translation like the ones Charlotte gave you, which basically mean "In the rain start dancing" and "In the rain dance", respectively. Both feel more clunky than the original IMHO.

It is better to go for a real Chinese idiom which expresses the same idea.

My condolences for your situation.

[lingo-ling]

What sounds good in one language often sounds terrible in another.