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Thursday, September 30, 2010

Social Nudity, Why?

I have had friends ask me, “Why are you a nudist?” I’ve been asked if I’m an exhibitionist, a swinger, a voyeur, or simply just weird. Maybe I am deluding myself, but I don’t think I’m any of those adjectives.

When I was a child I was a notorious stripper. Back then everyone just thought it was cute. “There she is again, naked as a Jay bird.” I’m sure the heat had a lot to do with the shedding of clothes. Also, as a child there were no concerns about how society would react to my nakedness, regardless of my resemblance to a Jay bird or any other bird for that matter. My only concern was for my own comfort, coolness, and freedom from the confines of my clothing. As I grew a little older, say my early teen years, skinny dipping became a more acceptable opportunity for being naked outside of my bedroom or bathroom. By then the pressures of society were upon me and so skinny dipping took on a new feeling of clandestine naughtiness. My friends and I would slip off our bathing suits and jump into the water blushing and giggling. Still, the desire to be naked outdoors stemmed from the feeling of freedom attained by throwing off our clothes which seemed to represent rules that our families, schools, churches, and the rest of society had thrust upon us. Adulthood seemed to bring with it tighter societal restrictions rather than the liberation I expected. In my mind cleavage and other bodily attributes needed to be well hidden under loose fitting clothes, especially while at work. Otherwise, eyebrows may raise, tongues may wag, and I would be presumed as nothing more than office eye candy rather than a business woman with a brain. So I remained covered up, in and out of the office, for decades. Then I discovered social nudism and rediscovered that childhood feeling of abandon. No clothes to weigh me down. Free from my burdens, even if only symbolically. I’m liberated.

But why public nudity, you may ask? Yes, I could certainly be naked in my home. But there is a different feeling when you are naked in nature rather than hiding indoors. The sun and wind caressing every inch of your skin is tantalizing and you can feel one with nature.

“Ok,” you may say, “I can understand being naked in nature, but why would anyone want to be around other naked people?” Well, there is something to be said about being around like minded people. I certainly wouldn’t feel comfortable walking around naked on a beach or at a party where everyone else is fully clothed. I would stick out like a sore thumb. Plus, the clothed people might be horrified and offended because they might not understand the reasoning behind my nudity. However, if everyone else were also naked then I would fit in and the others would share my viewpoint. Are you beginning to see where I’m coming from? Now let me ask you this question. When was the last time you went somewhere and made friends with fellow travelers or beach goers? I’m not saying it isn’t possible, but from my experience the greetings and conversations have been more temporary and superficial than those I’ve experienced when conversing with fellow nudists.  I think Tom Tiemann, from Bare Necessities Tour and Travel, summed it up perfectly when he wrote, “People who can shed their clothes in public (imperfections and all)---are also able to discard their emotional coverings as well. When they do this, their real self shines through and, they are ready for genuine friendship.”

9 comments:

  1. Thanks for posting this it really sums up how I feel as well. In fact I thought so highly of it I tried to post it up on my facebook account as a link but there is a block something about ojectionable content. Just goes to show how far we have to go yet. Thanks again and you now have a new follower. Alan

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  2. Alan,

    Thank you so much, I really appreciate it. I too tried to post to Facebook. It took some doing, but I finally got it to work. Feel free to add me as a FB friend. I'm listed there as Buff Blgr. I couldn't fit the whole name, go figure. I think it's scary just how conservative people are getting. I actually think I'm conservative, but not closed minded, I suppose. I guess I'll have to blog about it. ;-)

    Best Regards,
    BB

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  3. Great post. I'm a first time visitor (unable to fall back to sleep) and I found this post out of all on your site to be uplifting. Both my wife and I are home nudists but have never done so socially. Just no desire, but I certainly understand birds of a feather...

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  4. We all have different levels of enjoying our natural lifestyle. Nothing wrong with enjoying it in the privacy of your own home. I'd love to have the option to use my own pool and yard for enjoying our nudity, however alas we live in a communal environment where the neighbors would call foul. So Social Nudity it is for us, but it's been a great opportunity to meet other nudists and socialize more. We've definitely become more social in the nudist environment than in the textile world. Go figure.

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  5. We have just returned from a Nakation staying at a couple of Naturist B&B's. The thing that never ceases to amaze me is the openness and genuine connection that we have found in these naked social settings. The people may be from various walks of life and yet they are open minded and tolerant. This makes for interesting and enjoyable conversations.

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  6. ~Sunkissed, I totally agree. Nudity is the great equalizer and with no clothes to hide who you are tends to leave people more open to dialogue. Of course I think you have to be at least a little open minded to try nudism in the first place.

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  7. What a beautiful post! Congrats! I have been a nudist since childhood (haven't we all?) and it is wonderful. Feel free to stop my blog sometime. I am a writer and naturist. My first book, Ages of Aenya, involves the world's first naturist heroes. Hope you stop by to take a look.

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  8. ~Nick
    I will definitely check out your blog Nick. Thanks for reading mine.

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  9. ~Nick
    I did spend some time on your blog. Very interesting SciFi Fantasy Naturists. Very cool. I would live to hear from you on a personal note since you mentioned your cultural and religious background. I'm curious how naturism plays a role in a Muslim household?

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