Letters of the week, from Anthony and Rich

I live in Australia, and my city, as well as many others around the world, has an annual 'sexpo' where all the adult stores and distributors etc have booths. There is always a lot of controversy and everyone having their say at this time. I plan to write an article and submit it to all the local papers about the middle ground. The space between porn and nudity etc. If other people did similar and at a topical time submitted letters to the editor or an article the world would hopefully start to appreciate the beauty of the body without seeing it as merely an object for sexual gratification. That is how I want to do my part.

Cheers, Anthony

Dear DOMAI,

Thank you for your website - I have really enjoyed the pictures and stories here. I thought I'd share my own first experiences:

My family had always been very conservative about nakedness. Perhaps it was from their Asian background. They would display signs of discomfort whenever conversation strayed onto nakedness, or when movie scenes had brief moments of nudity. They always tried to change the topic quickly or looked away. From this, I grew up thinking that nakedness was a shameful thing, something to be avoided.

My first experience with female nakedness was when I was 14 and still in junior high. Amy, my next-door friend, was a year older and in high school. Our neighborhood had tennis courts nearby, just beyond a small lake sheltered behind large oak trees. My older brother Tommy and I would frequently play tennis with Amy and her older brother Brandon. On one particularly hot summer afternoon, Amy and I wanted to play some tennis. Tommy however wanted to stay indoors where it was air conditioned. Since Allan had tennis practice at school, it was just Amy and myself. Even before we started playing, my t-shirt was already damp. After we had rallied back and forth for a while, I was drenched, and was ready to call it quits. Amy laughed at me and said "giving up already?" Her wide grin showed she was just teasing.

We started walking back towards home, and as we neared the lake, I began to think the lake looked rather inviting. Amy must have had similar thoughts cause she said, "Let's go jump in the lake!" I told her I couldn't agree more. I quickly dropped my racquet, water bottle, shoes, socks, and t-shirt in a heap. As I started to head for the water, I stopped in my tracks, dumbstruck at the sight of Amy's bare backside as she was already at the water's edge. As I stood there gaping in confusion, Amy glanced back at me, and asked, "Aren't you coming?" Not knowing what to do, I could only reply, "Uhhh..." "Haven't you ever gone skinny-dipping?" she asked. "No...", not adding that I had never even seen a naked girl in person before. "Well come on", she said, "it'll feel better without shorts sticking to you", then turned and jumped into the water. I had never been naked in front of another girl before, but didn't know what else I could do. Awkwardly, I removed the rest of my covering and followed. I was more comfortable once I was in the water (and covered), and we splashed around and swam to cool off.

After maybe only five or ten minutes, Amy started heading back onto the grass, so I followed. Instead of putting her clothes back on, Amy sat on them, and started to wring out her hair. Still feeling unsure and embarrassed about being naked, I sat down beside her so that I didn't have to face her. I worked up my courage, and asked her "Do you do this a lot?" She grinned at me and said "Sometimes by myself... when it's especially hot out like today." I admitted to her that I had never even seen a girl naked before, explaining that my family was pretty conservative about such things. She looked at me with a curious expression, then got up and sat facing me, saying "Well, I don't think there's anything to be ashamed of." To my surprise, she looked me up and down, and gave me a lop-sided smile.

We continued to talk about our families, about how we grew up, and then to other topics. As we continued to chat, I slowly became more comfortable with my own nakedness as well as appreciating her naked body. She was beautiful. Her breasts were still small and budding with short, light blonde pubic hair below. Each time she noticed I was watching her, she gave me a little smile, a sort of "it's ok, you can watch" message.

Eventually she stood up, stretched a bit, then began putting on her clothes. Reluctantly, I did the same, knowing it was time to head home. We had a few more such private afternoons over the next few years when we were alone, and each time I was always amazed at her beauty. Her attitude towards nakedness has really changed my own, despite my family upbringing. I still think she's beautiful today, and we still remain great friends today.

- Rich