Through a Naturist Lens

Last night I went for a beach walk, solo. Once on the beach, my shorts joined the flipflops to be carried for the journey down the beach and back. Each year since coming to Ecuador, this has been on of my things. Why? Just because it feels good. Night’s darkness means that no one pays attention to my being on the beach, let alone being there while naked.

It isn’t about some sort of naked activism or about normalising naturism which is an activist endeavour. No one was considered nor were social boundaries being tested. It was me, the sand, the approaching tide, a solitary night heron, and a few passing silhouettes. I was simply being in the moment.

The same can be said about almost all of my moments spent nude, for me they are “normal ” moments. Skinny dipping in the sea is always away from others. Sunbathing is also done in relatively private settings. I have no intention of changing the cultural mindset of Ecuador. I am a normal human doing normal things, nude as often as possible.

Today, I am writing this post while in a hammock on the patio. The four foot fence of sorts that separates me from the passing traffic, somewhat provides some discretion for those who might otherwise be offended of my nudity. I do have a wrap handy in case someone breaches the space, someone such as the local caretaker. I have zero intentions of offending others. I also have zero intention of giving up my freedom to be clothing free. I think I have managed to find that delicate point of balance.

Living in an imperfect world, finding that middle ground is a real challenge. The mid point seems to be constantly shifting. As much as I’d like to be nude at all times, weather and climate permitting, the real world within which I live forces me to choose the times and places for my embracing nudity. I can’t expect or demand that it is the responsibility of society to do the work of finding the middle ground. Should I misjudge that midpoint, I find myself constrained to less time and place for nudity.

This blog site, along with Twitter, is part of my stretching the midpoint. Normalising Naturism is the strategy I, and others like me, are using. Even my use of photos, cropped photos, is intentional. Full nudity is implied in a natural context in such a way that those who aren’t nudists or naturists might stay long enough to read the posts and/or the tweets. Sticking around, they can learn that there is a real difference between naturism and pornography. That learned distinction is vital. It is what will eventually give all of us more time, space, and place for living more of our lives free of clothing. This isn’t missionary work, this is self work.

I’ve been getting a lot of sunshine these past few days. For a few days, I got to do some nude sunbathing as I mentioned in a previous post. For the past two days, I got to do some nude frolicking in the surf near the same spot as I went sunbathing. Frolicking might not be the best descriptor – being battered around by the powerful surf is a more apt description. My wife and I call the event “free, deep-tissue massage.”

Because the tide is always shifting, the times for our beach hikes is constantly changing. However, in spite of our best efforts to walk at low tide, we have been edging closer and closer to high tide and walking in the heat of the day. Upon our return to our apartment, a quick cold shower, followed by a cerveza con limon [beer with lime added] is enjoyed. Now, with the sun beating down on the patio, we are chased inside for some relief from the sun. The skin can only take so much sun – besides, I really don’t want to put on any more sunscreen today.

It’s all about balance – sun and shadow in equal parts. And that goes for our psychological aspect. Too much of either has a cost to mental health. Too much light in one’s life leads to burnout. For me, that meant too much of being in the outer world, the ego world. Introverts need time in the shadow world, the inner “imaginal” world. However too much of this invariably leads me to slip into a depression. Again, the task is to find that balance point and have one’s lived life dance between the light and the shadows.

In literal terms, that balance has allowed me to avoid getting a sunburn.

We have been walking in Olón, Ecuador, beach walking We haven’t walked the full distance yet. To the north, I am guessing that it is about round trip hike of about 16 km from our casa. To the south, about a 4 km round trip hike. For the past two days, we have walked 10 km per day. The other days, just 8 km hikes. We may extend our average hikes to 12 kilometres later on during our stay, but if we don’t we are certainly getting enough exercise as it is.

The walk happens while we wear bathing suits in spite of the fact of there being long stretches where we see no one, especially at low tide. Since the beach is a highway of sorts for motorcycles and an occasional pickup truck, it’s a risk I don’t want to take. On the weekends it is much busier. Rather than complain about the status quo, I simply am grateful that I can be walking the beach rather than hiding in my house while it is -30+ Celsius outdoors back home.

The town is just as interesting as the beach for us. You can read about the town here, so I won’t spend any time with that other than to say that there are many beautiful paintings done on the sides of buildings. I’ve included one of the most recent paintings here. It almost appears as if there are twice as many wall paintings than when we left here in April, 2019.

One of our social activities is what is referred to as Wine Wednesdays. It is the only time we deliberately meet up with other gringos. There are other meetup places and events, some happening daily, but we aren’t in Olón to hang out with expats. We are here for the beach, for our escape from winter, for a quiet peacefulness. And for me, the frequent night strolls down the beach when the tide is right, wearing nothing at all make up for the daytime beach strolls which we also typically do during low tides.

I have just come back from an eight kilometre walk along the beach. We are starting off slowly with a shorter distance as neither of us are quite up to speed yet after all the flying and wasting time in airports. Of course, I wasn’t able to walk while nude. This is a no no in Ecuador. Because of that, I am restricted to wearing a swimming brief that is tan through in design – Kiniki brand.

Since the brief is quite brief and it has been stretched from last year’s use, more sunlight is able to reach my skin. However, today, it was a moot point as it was basically cloudy for our walk. Still, how often do you see a couple on a beach at our age wearing almost see through, tan through mini bathing suits?  It doesn’t leave much to the imagination. Still, it comes off when possible.

At home, the new home in a rented one-bedroom condo, I don’t wear anything indoors and use a wrap on the patio to avoid issues with the passing public. There are other times I will be able to be clothing free in my quest to be nude as often as possible here in Ecuador. I’m off to a good start. Today was day one with another eighty plus days to go.

Well, we are finally here in Olon. It took longer than I had planned, but the end result is sunshine and warm temperatures not far from the Equator. There are two windows which have window seats. I can already tell that this might become my go-to writing corner.  We are closer to the beach than last year, about one block – short block – away, all on a sandy path. And, it is many, many times quieter.

Our journey was memorable. We left from our home airport about two hours later than originally planned – airplane issues. When we finally did get off the ground, we arrived too late for our connecting flight to Quito, Ecuador. The airline put us up at a good hotel which we got to use for about three hours before needing to take an alternate flight, this time to Cancun. Once on the runway, our plane turned back to have us disembark because of mechanical issues. Another few hours later, a replacement plane took us to Cancun.

We had to circle around Cancun for almost an hour to get slotted in for a landing. The result, another missed connecting flight and another night to layover, this time at an all-inclusive hotel along the Caribbean Sea. The next afternoon we boarded our flight to Guayaquil, Ecuador. By the time we arrived and cleared customs, we were too late to catch the bus to Olon. Another night in another lodging.

Finally, we got on our bus for the three hour trip to Olon. We left our house at 12:00 pm on January 3 and arrived here on January 6th at 1:10 pm. Naturally, the airline lost our luggage somewhere along the way with all the rescheduling, and rescheduling of our flights. There’s more to the story, but that is irrelevant for this post.

This is our third year at Olon, and it will likely be our last as we have other places we want to spend the winter. We had originally thought to try a different place this year, but getting too comfortable with Olon made it hard to move on. We both think that the universe has been telling us that we have to get out of our comfort zone and move on. I think we both agree that this time we will listen.

We aren’t doing too much today. We went out for an incredible lunch, then grocery shopped so that we could make our own dinner and tomorrow’s breakfast. Now, we are just relaxing. She is in her hammock, while I am on the window seat writing this blog post. We are too tired to do anything more. It will be an early bed time for us. The beach can wait until tomorrow.

I’m in Red Deer, Alberta visiting at my son’s home. He is our youngest and is father to our three youngest grandchildren. We arrived yesterday afternoon, much to the joy of the grandchildren while our son was still at work. It was time for games and playtime.

When we woke this morning around six in the morning, I didn’t waste time putting on the coffee as there wasn’t going to be much time before everyone woke to see what was under the tree. For me, it was a trip into the past when our children were young and excited for Christmas morning. Last year we spent the day alone as the weather wasn’t conducive to our children travelling to our home. The year before we spent Christmas in South America. This made the day more precious to us.

Until about four years ago, Christmas was always at our home with only a few exceptions such as when we were both teaching in China. Now, it is getting more and more unlikely that we will host Christmas in our home. It seems that with our family, it is getting more and more difficult to make it happen because of shift work for our children, and now for our two eldest grandchildren. Life changes. We are getting older and are more willing to do the travelling. We couldn’t all get together at the same time, but we have been able to make the arrangements to ensure that all eight grandchildren and the partners of those grandchildren who are now young adults.

I am blessed with my life, my children, my grandchildren, and the woman who has somehow managed to survive the hard years when I was suffering mentally.

Curiously, it seems we are closer than ever, as hard as it is to imagine that even being possible. Now, all I have to do is to stay out of trouble, keep my clothes on when appropriate when others who are not naturists, are present, especially in their homes, and stay healthy enough to enjoy living.

Merry Christmas, Joyeux Noel, Feliz Navidad, Happy Hanukkah, and Happy Yuletide . For me, it is the Yuletide more than Christmas, that has meaning. From the approach to the winter solstice to just after the birth of a New Year, I treasure the lights in the darkness, especially the light of family connection. I wish the connection of family and/or friends in your life during yuletide. Be the light in their lives.

I woke up, as usual, in the dark. At most times of the year, it would already be daylight at the same time of day, here on the Canadian prairies. Since today is the official day for the Winter Solstice, this only makes sense – the longest night and the shortest day here in the northern hemisphere. It’s not the friendliest time of the year for humans. Like many others, I have been putting links to help lines on various social media platforms, especially the suicide hotlines.  It’s a sad reality for too many, that at this darkest time of year, depression and hopelessness seem to gain ascendancy. However, there is one important thing to remember during this Dark Night of the Soul . . . the way forward is into increasing light.

The above is “normal” in terms of the psychological make up of humans.  However, there are other factors now in play that worsen the psychological situation. Trump has been impeached in the USA. However, rather than helping a significant percentage of the population, the anti-Trump crowd, if anything tensions are now worse with both sides of that existential conflict left in limbo. Democratic government doesn’t seem to matter anymore, leaving people feeling abandoned and powerless and dispirited. In Britain, the election of Boris Johnson has taken that country down a similar path. The hopes of having the UK respond with any sanity to environmental issues have been dashed and shattered, at least for four to five years.

In Canada, we faced the same threat in our recent national election. The centrist party squeaked out a minority government. That said, we know that minority government is typically short lived. The general mood is that of a hammer being held over our heads, waiting until the opportune moment for it to fall and persuade the people to elect another anti-environment government. How does this happen? Pit us all against each other so that anyone and everyone who doesn’t echo what we want or believe is tagged as the enemy. We see the truth of this in social media where intolerance is running rampant.

It’s enough to say fuck it and disappear into some proverbial forest to live off the land away from people. Yesterday, I came across this song that I want to share that sort of echoes this sentiment by Thomas Benjamin Wild.  It’s a hilarious song, something sorely needed at this time of year. After all, from this moment in time forward, we are marching back to the light that promises us spring and summer.

How are you doing? What are your hopes for the tomorrows to come?

Well, yesterday’s post caused a shift in reader response, both here and on other Social Media platforms. Generally, the response was very positive. One response, however, was challenging. It happens when an idea challenges one’s belief system. Why do we so readily dismiss other ideas? Still, that response had me think hard about body acceptance.  Just what does that mean – body acceptance?

From a naturist point of view, it appears to mean that we are uncritical of the appearance of others in their naked state. We see a person who is without clothing and are non-judgmental about that person’s physical state. It sounds simple. However, since we all come programmed [psychologically] with a host of complexes and triggers, it really isn’t simple at all. No one is walking around the planet complex free, as much as one wants to think they are. If you fall in love, a complex is involved. If you respond with any emotional heat, a complex is involved. Of course, the more conscious one is about their complexes, the more one is tolerant and compassionate about the complexity of others.

I am not as young as I once was – an understatement that often gives me a chuckle. I like being my age, for the most part. At one point in my life, I was thirty or so pounds lighter. I was skinny. I would run marathons. And, I was unaware of my complexes. Though I was a decent competitive runner, I was never good enough in my own eyes. In time, my body protested hard enough to bring excessive running to an end. I didn’t run for physical fitness or to maintain a certain body weight. I didn’t know why I ran. I just had to run and keep running. As I became more aware of my complexes, the need to run lessened. Now I walk for enjoyment, usually; sometimes because I get caught in an old complex and push the pace and the distance. Regardless, my body has paid the price for what I did and what I didn’t do to consciously care for it. Nowadays, I listen to my body better. I see my body more honestly. And, I do what I can for my body. After all, there is no replacement model which I can purchase.

Too many see body acceptance as a passive act, especially with regards to themselves. Look in the mirror and accept what you see there. All is good. Well, that is debatable. Is it “all good”? Does your body give you hints about needing to be treated better? We all know the answer to that question. However, most of us don’t have the will of the fortitude to make the changes our bodies are asking of us. It’s easier to see in others and make judgments about them and how they treat their bodies.

Of course, even though we say we have good body acceptance of ourselves, we know we are lying. We have visits to doctors for medications, a protest against accepting the status quo. We want to be better and will take any pill a doctor prescribes, even if it means several other prescriptions for coping with various side effects. We want to feel our best physically and mentally. Yet, we are typically too lazy to do much of the work to obtain needed physical change that our bodies are craving – diet, exercise, life style, etc.

For example, coffee is not good for me, nor is salt. If consumption is not reduced, there is this small issue of blood pressure that rears its ugly head. My options, and yes we typically all have options, cut down on the use of salt and drink less beverages containing caffeine. Or, get a prescription for blood pressure medication. Get the meds and I can continue to enjoy drinking almost as much coffee as I want. – This is me, not you. This is my body, not yours. I am not talking about you and your situation. – My response, less coffee and reduce the intake of salt while monitoring my blood pressure. Of course, I also have to do less sitting at the computer and more around more to accelerate recovery.  I have been down this path twice before over the past decade and I have managed to avoid the meds except for a short time seven years ago when my mental state was in a precarious situation.

I am probably ten pounds over my optimum weight for my body and my age. That is according to me, not the medical charts which have a different story to tell.  It’s not much and I likely shouldn’t even mention it. However, my body mentions it to me – not visually. I have no issue with how I look. Well, not that much. I have accepted being older and softer. If I don’t listen to my body, I get physical reminders such as pain and/or discomfort. Typically, as I go through relatively long periods of no pain, I am deaf to my body’s hints. And in this, I am quite normal.

Now, I know that there are significant and serious medical conditions that preclude such simplistic thinking, at least that what it appears to be on the surface. Yet, is it really simplistic thinking? Is there not actions we can take to treat our bodies better, to help our bodies?

I once again find myself writing here, wondering at the same time, why do I do this? Why do I write a blog post, especially on a site that is really not one that has a significant readership? Why do I place photos of myself in these posts? Obviously, it can’t be mostly about being an exhibitionist, though there is a bit of that in every blog post written by most people regardless of whether they are naturists, nudists, or folk that find comfort and safety in their clothing. With an average of about 12 visitors each day over the past two weeks, it is also, obviously, not about feeding my fan base. Okay, I’ll admit that the past two weeks have been an anomaly when it comes to my visitor count – December has its other demands from us. But the point remains, writing here does not seem to be about “others.” I guess that means that whatever is prompting me to keep writing on the blog site is about “self” – me, moi.

This photo, for example, is one taken this morning for me. The unedited version was placed in my personal journal which I maintain with more effort than I do this blog site. The photo was taken because of my attempt to be transparent with myself. It serves as a record of my physical state while the words serve as a record of my psychological state of being. The journal can’t really be called a diary as it doesn’t record much of what happened in my world. Now, I assume that simply knowing that I keep such a journal, one would wonder what the purpose of using some of my journal photos in this blog site is all about.

I took this photo because I had just trimmed off most of my body hair, something I will do again in two weeks time before we fly off to Ecuador. The photo then becomes a record; that’s it, an objective record of my physical self for December 19th, 2019. After writing my journal entry, I wondered about this whole thing regarding body hair and naturism. I’m seventy years old and no one cares if I have body hair or not. In the world of social naturism, especially in the online version of that collective, body hair sparks a never-ending debate. It seems absurd when you thing about it, especially when the body hair on one’s head is rarely questioned.

One neighbour commented to me that in her opinion, I look better and younger when I shave off my beard. That might be true, but it would never be an opinion that would persuade me to shave. She has often seen me nude and has never commented on my lack of pubic hair, or about the occasional appearance of hair on my back. Others, typically in the naturist community, have no comments to make about my beard or hair on my head, yet they do have something to say about the “pubes.” The responses fall into two camps, those for the smooth look and those for the “natural” look. Both sides try to influence “others” do do what they do, actions which are more about their need for validation that anything else. The truth is, it doesn’t matter one way or the other. My friend, Dan Carlson has written an excellent post on this, here.

The word “natural” has nothing to do with how we look and present ourselves. We are, each and every one one us, conscious and unconscious works of art in progress. If one was to strive to be as “natural” as possible, there would be no shaving, no haircuts, no nail trimming, no body-sculpting, and next-to-no plastic surgery. In a “natural” state, as far as body hair goes, I would be covered from head-to-toe with thick, coarse, very dark, body hair. Think of a black bear and you’ll have a good idea of just how hairy that would be. I found this image online to give you a good idea.

Now, there is nothing wrong with being this hairy. It is what it is. It is what we do with our body hair that becomes the question. Should we do anything? Purists say no. And of course, like all proselytizers, they get loud. It doesn’t matter what any self-proclaimed purist says. One makes decisions about body hair – haircuts, beard trims and styling, shaving off facial hair, trimming eyebrows or not, legs, backs, butts, and pubic region hair – for a variety of reasons. If a person does anything with regards to any body hair, then the “natural” argument goes away. It’s that simple.

Ah, there. Now I know why I decided to write a post today. Now, I open up the discourse to have you give your opinions about removal or modification of any and/or all body hair.