Most people would see birthmarks just as they are. This college student, however, sees their own as a whole new world.
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25 years Jacob has port wine stain birthmarks covering most of his body, particularly his arms and hands.
He said it took some time, but he has since learned to accept his marks.
“I felt pride that the marks that distinguish my skin were not chosen, but the result of quirky genetic mutations are far more meaningful to me,” he said.
In fact, he thinks it’s “kind of cool.”
“But having it my entire life tends to skew my perception of it.”
An avid doodler, it was in high school when he began to see his birthmark as a map.
Using just a pen, he’s been tracing outlines of his various skin colorations ever since.
Jacob says it usually takes about 1.5 hours to draw the entire map, sometimes more.
And it is not without difficulties, too.
“These hand drawings (I’m just on a roll today) were very difficult, mostly because my hand was constantly flexing and moving to get a better angle, and when pressure is put on my skin it whitens.”
“Yes, I missed a spot. I was writing in the mirror for a while there, surprised I got as much as I did.”
“This is where I reach the limits of what I can pen, myself.”
Since posting about his “birthmap” on Reddit, Jacob has had numerous people encouraging him to get the map permanently inked.
He’s not sure if he wants to, though.
“I love my map, but I don’t feel the need to outline it for others,” he explained.
However, he does enjoy sharing stories with other people who have birthmarks like his.
“I could post about my birthmark a hundred times and not fully communicate what it was like to grow up and live with it.”
He has a simple message for those with similar birthmarks: