It seems that I am avoiding posting here, or writing in my journal. I realise that there is something behind this, but at the moment, I am not quite aware what is behind this reluctance to write. I had a lot to write about, including another trip to Green Haven Sun Club with my wife, gardening, book selling-signing events, and just ordinary life that is so extraordinary.
I noticed it about three days ago. Rather than write, I wandered through this site and saw a lot that needed pruning. If you look into the archives, almost four hundred posts have been deleted leaving one hundred and seventy-seven posts. Of those removed, most were short and of-the-moment and had no value for readers who come here looking for information or reasoned opinions about naturism, and about naturism as therapy. Likely, I still have a few posts remaining that should also be deleted. But, now is not the time.
As a result of this blog-site introspection, I am left questioning the motivation for posting here, and the motivation of others who come here to read. I noticed that when I use the images of others who are known in the naturist community that readership is up. When I get too serious, readership declines. When I post frivolous “fillers” the response is predictably low in terms of readers. More than two hundred thousand visitors have wandered through my blog site at one time or other with many of those visitors reading more than one post during each visit. And frequently there are comments when a visitor finds something he or she either resonates or disagrees with in the post. All of this is very interesting for me as a writer, but it doesn’t really answer the question of motivation.
Am I posting simply as an excuse to put up photos, perhaps as a subconscious exhibitionist? I can’t exactly rule that out as I do post photos of myself here in cyberspace. However, for the most part, there is little sexual intent in the photos such as the one above. Most of the time, the genitals are either invisible due to strategic cropping, or the use of shadow to darken the area. Obviously, each photo tells the reader that I am naked, but that is about it. So then it comes down to the story the photo is trying to tell, or perhaps attempting to illustrate visually, the content of the text in the post.
Perhaps the greatest motivator for posting here is the sense that I have found a cyber-community in which I feel a sense of belonging. Though I haven’t met the vast majority of my readers, over time I have connected with enough of these readers via comments here, through social media interactions, e-mail exchanges, and for a few – face-to-face interactions. Without exception, the face-to-face meetings only confirmed the sense of friendship that had existed prior to the meetings where interaction was only on-line.
As I look back, I also see the “teacher” in myself offering what I know to others who come searching for … typically what they don’t even know they are looking for. Like myself, perhaps it is simply to feel a sense of belonging, that they are worthy beings who just happen to prefer being nude.
So I leave you with two questions that I hope you will answer, either here as a comment, or via e-mail, or as a comment on the social media platform from where you accessed this post. Why do you return to visit my pages? What is it here that you want most to see?
Reading the stories where and when you can be nude to see how they relate to our lives. Also seeing your nudity as it relates to the story being told. Plus enjoying your nudity and that of others. We are false to ourselves if we don’t admit that and to the fact that we also enjoy our own nudity being seen by others.
T & K