The
comment that
Hermione left just a day or so ago on the "
As Promised" post struck a chord with me that has had me following several different thought paths, so let me see if I can make any sense of my thinking and put some sort of coherent response together here.
She wrote:
Interesting that you posted those pictures, just when we have been having a lively discussion about words vs pictures on My Bottom Smarts.You are very brave!Well, I am not the one who usually reads at "
My Bottom Smarts." That's why it is listed under "Master's Links." So, I went and looked. It seems that there are a fair number of commenters there who are of the opinion that "pictures on blogs" are there "gratuitously." Fair enough. Everybody has their thing, and I can fully appreciate that looking at my naked ass is not everybody's cup of tea. Hey! I am a grown up with a well developed ego structure, and I "get" that my bare butt is not exactly on the national scenic tour. So... If my butt occasionally appears here for some of the world to see, what, if anything, does that mean?
Reasonable enough question to ask.
To begin with, I think it is important to understand that people write in this format for different reasons, and with significantly different goals and agendas. This has never been a blog that has had as its primary agenda to "drive traffic." I (and we) write my/our lives here. We don't tell fictional stories and we don't do "memes," and we sometimes leave the pages silent for long periods of time. It is all reflective of the real lives of real people. There is no fluff and there is no gloss. Those who have been reading for any time at all, know that it is possible to read for very long periods of time and hear very little about spanking, S/M, or alternative sexuality in any significant degree. In actual fact, if you are a longtime follower of The Heron Clan and/or The Swan's Heart, you probably know much more about menopause, hysterectomy, alzheimers, teaching, diabetes, knee replacement, polyamory, dealing with adult children, and our political and religious views than you do about our BDSM practices. Some part of our lives has to do with sadomasochism and M/s, and so I do get spanked. Once in a great while, as part of that, He will, on a whim, take some photos, and when He does, I will usually post them. I think that happens relatively rarely. People see my butt and my face at just about the same frequency. The photos are hardly gratuitous, in my view. They are part of the story that I and we tell here of what is happening in our lives.
Secondly, I think that pictures can tell stories, even as words can. I would defy anyone to say that I haven't told my story here with plenty of words -- over and over and over. I am sure that there are some who would be happy to say that I have spilled MORE than enough words over the years -- "PLEASE, SOMEBODY, SHUT THAT WOMAN UP!" So, for those who prefer words to pictures, there are plenty of words here I would think. But, now and then, an image can speak, if we have the vision to see what there is to be seen. I suspect that some see butt pictures and that is all they see. We are not accustomed in our society to confronting nudity, and so the human body displayed without clothing is shocking for some. That shock prevents us from being able to see beyond the obvious -- it is a naked ass!
For me the pictures that Hermione sees as perhaps controversial or daring or (at a minimum, brave) tell stories. Everyone seems to see them differently. Each time I look at them, I hear voices in my mind. I hear His disappointed response when He first saw them posted here: "Your ass is hardly red; only just pink -- I should have spanked you a lot harder and a lot longer!" I hear the questioning of a correspondent who asked, "Isn't it difficult for you to be that exposed and that vulnerable?" I look at them myself, and I see the aftermath of the battle; the total and complete physical surrender in every muscle. I see the faintness of the lines of the cutting and I feel pangs of distress at how faded that marking has become over the years.
Finally, I keep coming back to that "you are very brave" accolade. What is it that seems brave about having others see you naked? How is it that we imbue clothing with such symbolic power that the mere act of being revealed without it is an act of courage? I sleep naked. I have enjoyed vacations in naturist resorts where clothing is optional, and total nudity is the norm. I have spent a fair amount of time in public play venues where I have been entirely naked among large numbers of people. There is, perhaps, a time for appropriate personal modesty. Surely, I've seen the human form displayed in ways and in settings that I found cheap and degrading. However, I think that it is not so much a matter of what we show as it is a matter of who we are and how we feel about what we are doing when we are revealed to others with or without our clothing.
swan
