Last Sunday got me thinking about what Black's Beach means to me. I went down to Black's on a day when the forecast called for clouds in the morning with sunny skies breaking out at midday. I got there at about noon. A mile from the beach it was bright and sunny ... but at the beach itself it was cloudy. I decided to go down anyway, and I'm glad I did because I had a wonderful time, even though I never saw the sun.
It didn't start getting chilly until about 4pm, so I was comfortable being nude for a while. Between a bit of reading, a bit of dozing, a bit of sitting meditation and my interaction with a squirrel (who really wanted into my bag), I had a great time. I realized that the sun is nice, warm water is nice (it was cold!), but that's not the only reason I love Black's. I can see myself going there all wrapped up next Winter just to feel the peace. (I think that will have to be on a sunny day since I don't handle cold too well.)
At the end of the day, what are we all looking for? I'm looking for peace of mind. That's why I meditate, that's why I read, that's why I listen to music, and that's why I sometimes leave the music off. For a shot of peace, I spend a day at Black's.
Why Black's Beach? Why not any other beach? I have tried other beaches, so I know it's not just the beach that I'm looking for. I think it's the feeling of the place, the fact that I can shed my clothes and it's just nature and me. Sometimes, it's nice to sit down or lie down directly on the sand and really feel the earth under me. Doing the same thing anywhere else will also feel good, but there aren't too many places where you can be nude, enjoy nature, and not be bothered by someone being bothered by what you're doing or not doing! I intend to try some of the other places where I can do the same in due course, but I'm in no big hurry. Peace of mind has come from not rushing to do what I think I could be doing. It has come from learning to enjoy the here and now, for the here and now.
Showing posts with label Meditation. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Meditation. Show all posts
Monday, March 22, 2010
Tuesday, February 16, 2010
Meditating on the Beach ... not quite!
I spent a wonderful day on the beach yesterday. There weren't too many of the Black's Beach Bares regulars, but the volleyball players were there as usual. I finished the book I was reading - "Zen Wrapped in Karma Dipped in Chocolate" by Brad Warner. Another awesome book, just like his first book. This was his third book - I'll have to double back to the second book after this one. It called my name, and I had to read it. It's weird how his life seems to be a metaphorical version of mine in so many ways!
I did attempt to meditate/sit on the beach. The beach is a really nice place to meditate even if it isn't the quietest place in the world. The sound of the ocean successfully puts all other sounds in the background. There was only one problem ... the flies! I kept brushing them away while I read, but that was a background process. I didn't realize before I attempted to meditate how much of a distraction they would be. It's hard to clear your mind when all you are doing in chasing away flies. It was an interesting exercise while it lasted, but meditation in the beach will ideally have to wait for Spring when the flies have moved on. (I wonder where they go ... Do they move back North when it warms up there? Do flies migrate?)
I did attempt to meditate/sit on the beach. The beach is a really nice place to meditate even if it isn't the quietest place in the world. The sound of the ocean successfully puts all other sounds in the background. There was only one problem ... the flies! I kept brushing them away while I read, but that was a background process. I didn't realize before I attempted to meditate how much of a distraction they would be. It's hard to clear your mind when all you are doing in chasing away flies. It was an interesting exercise while it lasted, but meditation in the beach will ideally have to wait for Spring when the flies have moved on. (I wonder where they go ... Do they move back North when it warms up there? Do flies migrate?)
Monday, January 11, 2010
Spirituality and Nudism
There may be no inherent connection between spirituality and nudism, but for me they go hand in hand. Before I go further, I should define what I mean by spirituality. Webster's dictionary defines spirituality as "the quality or state of being spiritual", and defines spiritual as "of, relating to, consisting of, or affecting the spirit".
Taken in context with those definitions, nudism has been a spiritual experience for me. It uplifts my spirit, just as meditation does. And just as regular meditation gives me peace of mind, the ability to focus and a general state of wellness, nudism does too. Empirically proving that meditation helps me in the ways I've described is easy - if I stop, I see the benefits gradually diminish, and if I start again, I see the benefits kick back in. Similarly, if I cannot be a nudist for a while, I see the benefits diminish, and vice versa.
I concede that it may not be easy to make the connection between cause and effect. We are after all human beings with complex variables that continually affect us, so narrowing down the specific cause and the specific effect is not easy. I have however found a correlation in my state of mind and nudism, just as I have with meditation. Of course, I combine the two whenever I can, as the accompanying photograph shows ...
Taken in context with those definitions, nudism has been a spiritual experience for me. It uplifts my spirit, just as meditation does. And just as regular meditation gives me peace of mind, the ability to focus and a general state of wellness, nudism does too. Empirically proving that meditation helps me in the ways I've described is easy - if I stop, I see the benefits gradually diminish, and if I start again, I see the benefits kick back in. Similarly, if I cannot be a nudist for a while, I see the benefits diminish, and vice versa.
I concede that it may not be easy to make the connection between cause and effect. We are after all human beings with complex variables that continually affect us, so narrowing down the specific cause and the specific effect is not easy. I have however found a correlation in my state of mind and nudism, just as I have with meditation. Of course, I combine the two whenever I can, as the accompanying photograph shows ...
Monday, January 4, 2010
This WILL be a Happy Nude Year!
This is a fairly long post, and at first glance it may seem to have nothing to do with the title of the post ... but stick with my long-winded thought process ...
2009 was a year of transformation for me. At the beginning of 2009, my mind was a mess. I had hit an all-time low personally and professionally. From the outside, things might have looked the same as they always had - I lived in the same house with the same family, I interacted with mostly the same folks, and I worked at the same job. But internally, it all came crashing down. One year later, at the beginning of 2010, my life is looking better than it ever has!
As part of the transformation, I discovered who I really am. I discovered that I really do like simplicity, I really do want to leave a small footprint, I really am a vegetarian, I like to read a lot, I am comfortable with quietness, I function best when I have routine in my life - from meditating and exercising regularly to sleeping early and getting up early - and I really am a nudist. I sometimes wondered if some of these were just silly notions, but now I know that they are really who I am. Discovering, embracing, and accepting who I really am has given me peace of mind and calmness. As a result I also have a better relationship with my family and I am more productive at work.
A few good friends, and many good books helped me through this year. A couple of books had an especially large influence on my transformation - The Three Marriages by David Whyte and Hardcore Zen by Brad Warner. I read them both twice in 2009, and didn't get bored the second time around!
I also started to write in 2009. I had intense feelings that I just had to express, and decided to do so in a journal. To my surprise, they came out as poems. I had never written poetry, and had never thought myself capable of it, but there is was to my surprise. I also started writing this blog.
2009 started with sickness; not your normal definition of mental sickness, but it was sickness all the same. Let's just say I had a problem with all kinds of relationships - with others, with my work and with myself. Nudism turned was the key to my recovery. Initially, there was one problem with it - the problem of acceptance by my family. Patience and perseverance has finally led to their acceptance, and that's why I think 2010 is going to be a Happy Nude Year! On the 3rd of January, I went to Black's Beach for the first time with no reservations on their part, and it was a more beautiful and peaceful feeling than ever before.
The future seems bright and clear since the present is the only thing that really matters. Here's to many happy days at the beach, and continuous progress!
2009 was a year of transformation for me. At the beginning of 2009, my mind was a mess. I had hit an all-time low personally and professionally. From the outside, things might have looked the same as they always had - I lived in the same house with the same family, I interacted with mostly the same folks, and I worked at the same job. But internally, it all came crashing down. One year later, at the beginning of 2010, my life is looking better than it ever has!
As part of the transformation, I discovered who I really am. I discovered that I really do like simplicity, I really do want to leave a small footprint, I really am a vegetarian, I like to read a lot, I am comfortable with quietness, I function best when I have routine in my life - from meditating and exercising regularly to sleeping early and getting up early - and I really am a nudist. I sometimes wondered if some of these were just silly notions, but now I know that they are really who I am. Discovering, embracing, and accepting who I really am has given me peace of mind and calmness. As a result I also have a better relationship with my family and I am more productive at work.
A few good friends, and many good books helped me through this year. A couple of books had an especially large influence on my transformation - The Three Marriages by David Whyte and Hardcore Zen by Brad Warner. I read them both twice in 2009, and didn't get bored the second time around!
I also started to write in 2009. I had intense feelings that I just had to express, and decided to do so in a journal. To my surprise, they came out as poems. I had never written poetry, and had never thought myself capable of it, but there is was to my surprise. I also started writing this blog.
2009 started with sickness; not your normal definition of mental sickness, but it was sickness all the same. Let's just say I had a problem with all kinds of relationships - with others, with my work and with myself. Nudism turned was the key to my recovery. Initially, there was one problem with it - the problem of acceptance by my family. Patience and perseverance has finally led to their acceptance, and that's why I think 2010 is going to be a Happy Nude Year! On the 3rd of January, I went to Black's Beach for the first time with no reservations on their part, and it was a more beautiful and peaceful feeling than ever before.
The future seems bright and clear since the present is the only thing that really matters. Here's to many happy days at the beach, and continuous progress!
Wednesday, October 7, 2009
More Zen Than Nudism!
Sometimes things slow you down
Whether it's work or play
You try to keep moving on
But circumstances force you to stay
When things get bad, realize this
It usually comes from something
You can't get, it starts to bug you
Like objections to your lack of clothing
At times like these, take a deep breath
Don't worry about future or past
Right now, live in this moment
It will go fast, it will not last
To further expand on my previous post on Zen and Nudism ... Nudism gave me peace of mind and helped me get past some of the mental blocks that were holding me back. And then ... when the objections to my nudism came fast and furious (literally!), I had to make choices. The choice I made resulted in restrictions to my nudist lifestyle and that started to get me down. I know - and knew - that I myself had made that choice, but every now and then I couldn't help thinking that it would be perfect if I could have it both ways.
The thought of having it both ways plays a number on my mind. I start to live in the future, and miss out on the present. But the present is our only reality. I would squander away minutes, hours or days of my life before I snapped out of it. And that's where Zen has helped me. Meditation gives me the stability that I seek and the ability to see things the way they are, to see reality for what it is. Having goals and a vision for the future is good, because it prevents me from drifting, but living in that future is a waste of time. I find it easy to intellectually understand the concept of living in the moment, but difficult to live my life by it. Meditation gives me that ability.
Whether it's work or play
You try to keep moving on
But circumstances force you to stay
When things get bad, realize this
It usually comes from something
You can't get, it starts to bug you
Like objections to your lack of clothing
At times like these, take a deep breath
Don't worry about future or past
Right now, live in this moment
It will go fast, it will not last
To further expand on my previous post on Zen and Nudism ... Nudism gave me peace of mind and helped me get past some of the mental blocks that were holding me back. And then ... when the objections to my nudism came fast and furious (literally!), I had to make choices. The choice I made resulted in restrictions to my nudist lifestyle and that started to get me down. I know - and knew - that I myself had made that choice, but every now and then I couldn't help thinking that it would be perfect if I could have it both ways.
The thought of having it both ways plays a number on my mind. I start to live in the future, and miss out on the present. But the present is our only reality. I would squander away minutes, hours or days of my life before I snapped out of it. And that's where Zen has helped me. Meditation gives me the stability that I seek and the ability to see things the way they are, to see reality for what it is. Having goals and a vision for the future is good, because it prevents me from drifting, but living in that future is a waste of time. I find it easy to intellectually understand the concept of living in the moment, but difficult to live my life by it. Meditation gives me that ability.
Monday, September 21, 2009
Zen and Nudism
I've been re-reading Hardcore Zen by Brad Warner. The book is a must read for anyone even remotely interested in the subject. The author is a former Punk Rocker, works in Japan making monster movies, and is a Zen Teacher in Japan. He presents a hilarious and wonderfully irreverent look at Zen.
Quoting from pg 55,
Every single human being in the world at some time thinks that "if only" this or that one of our conditions could be met then we'd be all set. ... Think again.
...
We always want to believe that somewhere there's a perfect situation, if only we weren't barred from it. But that's not the reality.
...
Maybe your lot right now could be improved. I know mine could. And working to make things better is great. But we don't just work to make things better and leave it at that, do we? We live in the idealized world inside our heads. And that keeps us from ever really enjoying what we have right now ...
It's not a new concept, but it got me to thinking about those of us who have family that don't approve of our inclination for nudism, how that plays on our minds, and the potential for unhappiness as a result of it. We do have the freedom and potential to change the situation, but we may be reluctant to do so. The reluctance most likely stems from a decision we've made based on priorities we've set ourselves - the decision that the circumstances that prevent us from pursuing our particular interest (e.g. nudism) is not worth losing something else (e.g. family).
If we don't fret, but keep working on creating more situations to experience nudism, and enjoy what opportunities pop up in our daily lives while we work on getting to where we would like to be, we'll be a lot happier and a lot more at peace.
This also applies to nudism, and life, in general. With the restrictions that are placed on our lifestyle by society, it can get frustrating, but if we enjoy what we do have we'll be better off for it. That doesn't mean we accept the restrictions if we don't want to. We must constantly work towards where we would like to be, but we must live in the current moment. If we live in the future, we may very well discover when we get there that the future is not what we had hoped for and, even if it is what we hoped for, we needlessly wasted the time we spent waiting to get there.
Quoting from pg 55,
Every single human being in the world at some time thinks that "if only" this or that one of our conditions could be met then we'd be all set. ... Think again.
...
We always want to believe that somewhere there's a perfect situation, if only we weren't barred from it. But that's not the reality.
...
Maybe your lot right now could be improved. I know mine could. And working to make things better is great. But we don't just work to make things better and leave it at that, do we? We live in the idealized world inside our heads. And that keeps us from ever really enjoying what we have right now ...
It's not a new concept, but it got me to thinking about those of us who have family that don't approve of our inclination for nudism, how that plays on our minds, and the potential for unhappiness as a result of it. We do have the freedom and potential to change the situation, but we may be reluctant to do so. The reluctance most likely stems from a decision we've made based on priorities we've set ourselves - the decision that the circumstances that prevent us from pursuing our particular interest (e.g. nudism) is not worth losing something else (e.g. family).
If we don't fret, but keep working on creating more situations to experience nudism, and enjoy what opportunities pop up in our daily lives while we work on getting to where we would like to be, we'll be a lot happier and a lot more at peace.
This also applies to nudism, and life, in general. With the restrictions that are placed on our lifestyle by society, it can get frustrating, but if we enjoy what we do have we'll be better off for it. That doesn't mean we accept the restrictions if we don't want to. We must constantly work towards where we would like to be, but we must live in the current moment. If we live in the future, we may very well discover when we get there that the future is not what we had hoped for and, even if it is what we hoped for, we needlessly wasted the time we spent waiting to get there.
Saturday, July 18, 2009
Black's Beach
I lie on the hot sand
Face turned to the side
Arms above my head
The sun beating down on my back
I hear the murmurs
Of people talking
Over the roar of the ocean
As I drift into semi-consciousness
I crack an eye open
See the sweat glisten
As it seeps from my arm
A little rivulet in the crook of my elbow
I love it here
It's peaceful and serene
This beach is special
The happy place I've been looking for
Face turned to the side
Arms above my head
The sun beating down on my back
I hear the murmurs
Of people talking
Over the roar of the ocean
As I drift into semi-consciousness
I crack an eye open
See the sweat glisten
As it seeps from my arm
A little rivulet in the crook of my elbow
I love it here
It's peaceful and serene
This beach is special
The happy place I've been looking for
Friday, July 10, 2009
What a Lovely Day!
Today was an abbreviated but satisfying day at the beach. I took an extra-long lunch break and made it down to Black's. I met a few of the Black's Beach Bares, and a wonderful couple from Arizona. My stay was short - I spent just an hour and a half there - but it was absolutely terrific, if a bit warmer than it's been. I'm still on a high from it.
Today, as I lay on the sand, I was thinking about how I'd like my life to be. I realized that it's really close to where I want it to be, it just needs a little tweaking. I think we spend too much of our time worrying about what's wrong, instead of enjoying what's right. This trip to Black's is a good example - I could have fretted about not being able to be there for the whole day, but instead I enjoyed the time I did spend there. The calmness to see things clearly comes from meditation, which I really should start practicing regularly, or from being a nudist. Lying on Black's, or sitting at the water's edge as it washes over me, is truly a meditative experience!
Today, as I lay on the sand, I was thinking about how I'd like my life to be. I realized that it's really close to where I want it to be, it just needs a little tweaking. I think we spend too much of our time worrying about what's wrong, instead of enjoying what's right. This trip to Black's is a good example - I could have fretted about not being able to be there for the whole day, but instead I enjoyed the time I did spend there. The calmness to see things clearly comes from meditation, which I really should start practicing regularly, or from being a nudist. Lying on Black's, or sitting at the water's edge as it washes over me, is truly a meditative experience!
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