I’m sorry I have been less than prolific here recently. But I will get back on track soon . . . I have been struggling with some issues, as in emotions vs. the middle path. I will write more about that later.

A bit of other middle path news in the meantime: I attended the final swim event of the season for our naturism group in Ottawa last night. It was a great turnout: about 85 people showed up, and I had some good discussions with a few about naturism in general.

One thought I came away with is that just about everyone there takes social nudism/naturism for granted, and events like our swims are both a celebration of our natural state and a chance to enjoy some excellent facilities that normally — or abnormally, we might note — have pretty strict clothing rules.

Mentally, we have liberated ourselves from textile taboos and body image issues, the latter to varying degrees, of course. One could view the liberation as enlightenment or transcendence  . . . and I wonder how that affects us spiritually.

Because, let’s face it, all naturists reject the fundamentalist myth of the “shame” felt in the Garden of Eden story when man “knew they were naked.” I think we all know that story was also about enlightenment, when man’s consciousness grew to the point that he realized if he covered up sometimes, he might survive some of the harsher conditions around the planet, hence the departure from the cradle where clothes were never, ever needed . . .

There I go getting metaphysical again . . .

But I was also reminded last night that all of us have people in our lives who are not into nudism/naturism . . . And I can only shrug about it at this moment, and recall the old proverb about leading a horse to water . . . Enlightenment comes to each in their own time.

I look forward to our group’s midsummer barbecue by a private lake, because outdoor social nudism is so wonderful.

To all my naturism friends and readers, a Happy Nude Summer to you all!

Hugs

— Jillian