International Young Naturists Organisation
Naturist Resources => Blogs, Videos, Articles about Naturism/Nudity => Topic started by: bendy698 on January 16, 2010, 09:57:49 am
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Hey all, I starting writing this blog (essay?) last year when I had more free time that recounts all the moments in my life where naturism was a positive influence. It's not a helpful or informative blog by any means, but it's an accurate account of things in my past. Hopefully if time allows it, I will catch it up to present day soon!
Part 1
I got started with nudism fairly early in my life, right before I hit my teens and was about to enter the dreadful stages of puberty. Fun times... but in actuality, I didn't have it so bad. This could be partially due to the fact that I was a nudist, but I think it had more to do with having an understanding family who took the time to explain things that were going on with me and give me positive feedback. I was very lucky in that sense. Growing up with a self assured attitude about myself and my body had some (mostly) positive effects on my friendships as I was going through school, however a lot of this didn't start to kick in until I was in high school.
I think every kid goes through a sort of hell all the way through middle school... it's like a particular rite of passage. I was no exception. I really liked to be nude even then, but it was a thing I did mostly on my own because it was awkward except around certain members of my family. Other than that, I didn't dare bring it up to any friends in school because I wasn't exactly part of what you would call the "in" crowd. However you would define that. Anyhow, to make a long story short, several years went by before I made a single comment to anyone about nudism. I was at least 15 years old before I told my closest friend.
My first buddy tried going nude with me in his room a few times, which was slightly awkward admittedly. I don't think he quite grasped why were doing it and we were kinda young at the time so he made assumptions it wasn't right to do later, like he felt guilty about it which at the time didn't hurt my feelings too much surprisingly. I kinda just wrote it off that it wasn't for him and moved on with that idea. Me and that friend still hang out till this day and we haven't done anything nude since, although he's way cool with the fact I'm a nudist as most of my good friends are.
Fast forwarding a couple years, I'd say that 17 was a good year for me as far as advocating the lifestyle goes. I was getting heavily involved with some naturist websites and even wrote an article for a magazine that year, which I was very proud of. it was the same year that I came out as a nudist to a couple of my girlfriends and a select few other friends. I also wrote about it in school for the first time in a autobiography I did in creative writing class. I was having a good year all around and was on top of my game as far as confidence was concerned which probably helped me in making these important decisions of who to trust.
It turned out my judgment wasn't always correct. My second girlfriend who I met at work was mad at me for some reason I can't recall and decided to take it upon herself to tell everyone she knew and that we worked with that I was a nudist and had been naked with my family like it was some kind of big deal. I told her I wasn't ashamed about it, which was totally the truth, but at work I was at first very embarrassed with the comments some of my coworkers made. I was being bombarded constantly with all sorts of questions that seemed pretty ridiculous, but I tried to tackle them anyway. I was frustrated for awhile, but it all begin to fade and I made positive of the situation. I started to feel really proud of who and what I was and I wasn't going to let anyone intimidate me from that! And besides, I wasn't in the "closet" anymore really. If my being a nudist was common knowledge among so many, it made me feel like I didn't have anything to hide and that I would have less work to do explaining it in the future. This was a big turning point in my life.
Part 2
I stayed with the girlfriend who “tattled” on me for several months despite the little stunt she pulled. We had our ups and downs like in any relationship, and I’m always willing to forgive. I knew based on her actions that she wasn’t the slightest bit interested in naturism, and I wasn’t about to try to go there and cause any unnecessary trouble. The only problem with this was how I felt not quite like myself. Whenever I’m in a relationship I usually tend to spend a lot of time with my significant other, and with this particular girl I knew I couldn’t express myself as far as the nudist lifestyle was concerned. I was able to deal with this, putting her on a pedestal over all else, but in the end she ended up cheating on me. This was the end to yet another uncomfortable and abusive relationship, but things wouldn’t always remain this way.
Right after graduating from high school, I was introduced to a new girlfriend by another coworker, breaking the cycle of me dating nothing but those I worked with. This was positive considering how those relationships ended up and how they negatively impacted my performance on the job. My new girlfriend had moved to the US from Poland and was much to my surprise, also a nudist! My friend that I worked with may have known this when she set us up and hoped that we were compatible. I remember when we first dated we had some really mind blowing conversations about the world and people’s attitudes toward others, acceptance of naturism, and many other things. You could say I sort of fell in love with her mind. lol I’ll admit that.
After we were officially dating, we just kind of fell into a routine of hanging out at her place. For at least a good 2 or 3 months, everyone there was dressed when I came to visit, including my girlfriend. Her parents got to know me and it came to a point where I was there every evening, even for dinner. After having a brief, but pleasant chat about my own involvement in nudism with my gf’s parents, they informed me of their own and told me they saw no problem with all of us being freer in their home. My girlfriend and I were of course excited about this and from then on spent a lot of our free time there in the nude. Even her parents started to become more open about it. This was very cool as it was nice to meet others who were so comfortable and relaxed about their bodies while exhibiting the same positive attitude I was familiar with. This also meant we all had a certain level of trust with each other which was a great feeling.
Over time our relationship grew, and we were able to convince the friend that introduced us to hang out nude, which was a little difficult for her at first. Since we didn’t rush her, it eventually happened on her terms and we were all happy. Several more months passed and things were really good between us. However, not too much after our one year mark, my girlfriend and I started to have some disagreements. We were having a hard time keeping up with each other considering that we were at different stages in our lives. She was just finishing high school and I had already put a good solid year into college. Our difference in ages would ultimately end up being our biggest downfall. We broke up, but with no hard feelings. We both realized that despite how good we were for one another in some aspects, didn’t mean that we were going to have a perfect, lasting relationship. The breakup was mutual, and we agreed that a friendship was actually possible considering how well we cliqued.
That's all I have for now. Any type of feedback is appreciated as I am a creative writing major and it helps me to grow and adapt. More to come soon... ?
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Wow that's a great blog/ essay! Thanks Josh! I look forward to reading more.
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Your witting style is smooth and interesting and I'd give it a A- in its present form (I'm a tough grader so you did really well!) For the next one, which I hope you do write, perhaps expand slightly more on the events/ ideas?
But again, this is great!
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Thanks a lot guys! And I do appreciate your honest opinion Carl. In fact, I sorta had that thought reading them back to myself, that they were kinda rushed and I could have elaborated more on each individual event. I definitely see eye to eye with that point. I think this may be because it's harder to recall an exact moment in time when it's about something in your past that you've kinda let go of over the years. But I will try harder to make it a little more in depth for sure. :)