Today, with the help of Rick the Auckland region contact for Free Beaches NZ Inc. we set up a stall at Unitec Institute of Technology and chatted for four hours to students and staff and handed out flyers - starting with 100, coming home with 39.
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What was our message? That it's not illegal; that it's beneficial for the body and mind; that it's a great way to unwind; that it brings you close to nature; and so much more. We talked about skinny-dipping and about being able to enjoy the experience at any time in appropriate places - and not just in the middle of the night after you've had a few. And we talked about the mutual respect and understanding amongst genuine naturists.
The response was wide and varied as I suppose you could imagine.
There were giggles and sniggers; there was polite consideration and genuine interest; and there were some shocked "goodness no thank you"s and some wouldn't even look at us. But each one left with a smile and a friendly experience.
At one stage in life I would have giggled behind my hand too so have to understand their reactions - especially in front of their friends. But, for lack of another metaphor, the seed has been sown and you just don't know when it will grow.
We chatted to people of all cultures - from Asian and Indian to Island students. We even got a group of Island boys to hand some flyers out.
We found the organiser very accommodating and supportive and would love to have us back again. The flyers we came home with will be sent to the student associations of tertiary organisations around the country in the hope they will put them on a noticeboard where even one student might see it and become interested.
It was a lot of fun and I believe very valuable.
Hi Donna,
ReplyDeleteHats off to you and Rick for going to the effort of putting it out there among the younger generation (no pun intended); it wouldn't have been an easy thing to do I imagine.
I enjoyed reading your own story back in one of your January blogs, and thank you for the reference you made to my email about mine and my wife's thoughts and experiences with regard to the younger generation.
Some of the reactions you describe are somewhat prudish almost, but many would be culturally based, which is completely understandable. Even so, isn't it funny how judgmental the younger generation are about experiencing nudism, but yet, many of those same people are quite accepting of the "out there" over-sexualized society we live in now, and morally speaking, they really are poles apart. Those reactions are largely driven by ignorance and inexperience, so you can't always blame them for feeling that way.
Your approach is absolutely the correct one though, there are younger people out there that don't know where to start, and having done what you just have at Unitec, can only help in reaching out to those people, or at the very least, making them aware. And no, they won't necessarily be in their droves out there, but people talk to each other, and word gets around, and that's definitely one way, if not the fastest way, that the nudist movement in NZ may start to grow, with more people getting involved from a younger age.
Thanks for doing such a great job at being a driving force for the nudist/naturist movement in NZ!
Cheers,
Mike