As a twenty five year Naturist, I believe in the better, positive
aspects of community and socialization including nudity I have
experienced first-hand. Originally I was the person who knew nothing
of being naked with anyone. Nobody in my family was a nudist, I had
only ever heard of skinny-dipping until around age 10 years or so, and
the very idea of people doing ANYTHING together without clothing was
not in my imagination. That is, until I saw my first book detailing
the activities of naked people, the places and types of things they
do. - I was astounded! As a child I ha no experience with being
socially naked aside from swimming in my underwear in a improvised
“swimming pool” that was actually a cement mixing trough (a large,
rectangular, steel tub) and one incident where the clothes my brother
and I had went into the grandma’s laundry leaving he and I wrapped
in only bath towels. On the laundry occasion my brother and I sat on
the front staircase with a breeze from the open door blowing up our
towels and I think we both realized this felt pretty good. The first
book I saw on nudism was titled, “Fun in the Sun” and it was a
complete eye-opener! Clothed versus unclothed: Of course the first
thought some people have is, ‘Naked!! Oh I could never do THAT!!!’
or that life is good fully clothed and that clothing permits a certain
individual anonymity. This is a completely valid thought, as all
thoughts are in the process of self-analysis or situational awareness.
However to understand what I love about social nudity you only need to
think about working a long day in any uniform, getting home and
stripping it off to feel the relief nudists feel all the time! Living
nude is also the full-body embodiment of the “breathing” our feet
enjoy after kicking off a pair of eight-hour-working dress shoes! In
the moment you say, “Ahhhhh!” and feel the blood rushing back into
your feet, that is what many nudists say they experience bodily when
stripping off clothes at their favorite clothing-optional spot. Nudism
is also more recently called “Naturism” by a large audience of
believers and body acceptance champions. Naturism permits erase the
anonymity of similar clothing we use to hide from each other, it
equalizes like no other and allows us to experience the full quality
of life in all it was originally meant to be! This may sound a little
idealistic or romantic, possibly even theological, but I consider
myself more of a spiritual person than a religious one, so there
should be no confusion on that part. Recently I studied social
disorganization theory and what happens to couples and families under
intense financial or social strain, and it occurred to me the symptoms
described in my textbooks are often not apparent (to me) among
naturism practitioners. This is a really great thing and through this
blog I hope to convey some of the details and workings of naturist
events, naturist gatherings, naturist philosophy and introduce you to
this exceptional way of living! Much of the content of this tumblr
blog is borrowed from other sources, other users and anonymous persons
all around the world. For me, it is easy to tell when images featuring
naked people were taken with their consent and awareness, and the
images I select convey the messages most closely associated with the
things I saw in my first book on nudism. The enjoyment people have
when they decide clothing is unnecessary (together) and what happens
when a smile truly becomes the most important feature of our bodies!
Many people initially think, 'But why would I want to go without
clothing?’ or 'What is to be gained by setting aside all the clothes
protecting me from embarrassment and scrutiny?’. Well after trying
it for so many years I can say it feels wonderful and the people you
meet generally recognize the true humanity in you and in various
social situations when nude. It is not about being embarrassed, shy,
outgoing, or even perverted for that matter, it is about BEING human
and expressing care, concern and enjoyment for life with every person
around you! It happens naturally if you let it. It happens naturally
when you are only yourself. Look someone in the eyes and forget about
all the maneuvering to gain a foothold in life! Take a step in the
right direction by barely placing one uncovered foot in front of the
other. FEEL the ground give beneath each toe, exhale gently and step
forward. Let go. WHERE IS NATURISM? As the Internet grows and deepens
in its content, more and more information on alternative living and
lifestyles is available to a wider audience. Graphs describing the
penetration of the Internet into the various continents of the world
show America was leading the list with something like seventy-three
percent of all households having some form of online access. This
represents the ability to allow a diversity of opinions and
information as never known before in the history of humanity. We offer
the good with the not so good, things to motivate people to action as
well as those occasionally causing us to question our motivations.
Images carry many meanings and in times when words sometimes fail us,
or speech falls upon deaf ears, perhaps only an image combined with
text will do! So rather than being shy, reserved, introverted and
unknowing of the ways of the world and the things which are important
to different peoples, we can collectively move forward in our
understanding of each other, of life and of our shared experience. I
hope you will join me on this journey and I look forward to any
comments, questions, links or other ideas anyyone wishes to share! Be
positive if you are able, and if not, I am willing to discuss the
things making you unhappy and exploring what may be done about them.
Very best wishes! ~ Den