The start of something bigger
This story was originally published as part of Beneath Healing Skies, a short story collection in aid of MSF (Médecins Sans Frontières, also known as Doctors Without Borders)
Looking back on it, this is an incomplete story. It tells the first part of a potentially much bigger tale. The last section also feels a little rushed, if I’m honest. So in the weeks to come I will be expanding it. Keep your eyes peeled! But now… on with the show, as they say
Dominic loved the forest. Every day he could, he’d make his way out of town and spend as much time as he could among the trees, enjoying the sunshine, the birdsong, and the overall sensation of peace. He remembered spending time in nature with his grandad as a small boy, and while the old man had passed on a few years earlier, being out here helped Dom feel as if his grandad was not far away. Dominic smiled as he remembered – such a kindly, gentle man with a simple but rock-solid faith who’d had such a hard life but never had a bad word for anyone.
Of course, life was different this year. The war in Eastern Europe had brought new people to his old-fashioned Lancashire town: crying babies, sad-eyed women, sullen youths interested only in their phones, and beautiful, mysterious girls with strong accents. A few had even started coming to his church, although he knew they struggled to understand all that was going on. That was OK – Dominic didn’t always understand everything, either! But now at eighteen years old, he was one of the senior members of the youth group, and he felt like he should know more. That was one reason why he came out to the forest so often, so he could spend time with his thoughts.
Tall, with short blond hair and stubble that his school would never let him grow into his desired goatee, Dominic had never been skinny, and wasn’t particularly athletic. Some of his classmates even considered him a nerd, but really, he was just a little shy and didn’t enjoy the crazy nightlife some of his friends revelled in. He was good at school, but he wasn’t into computer games much. He would rather be outside in the fresh air or continuing his struggles to learn the guitar than spending hours in front of the TV or PC. He felt genuinely blessed that he lived on the outskirts of a small town, where he could easily get out into the countryside.
It was a Wednesday afternoon in late May. As a Year 13, Games afternoon was optional if you weren’t on a school team, so he’d driven his trusty old Ford Fiesta home at lunchtime, grabbed a quick sandwich and a bottle of water, changed into some loose shorts, a t-shirt, and his old comfy running shoes, and headed along the lane that backed his estate, towards some of his favourite walking trails. He rarely saw anyone he knew while he was out, as hardly anyone seemed to walk there unless they were taking their dogs, so never worried about looking cool. He just wanted to relax after a stressful morning – he’d forgotten all about the maths test they’d had period 4, and it hadn’t gone so well! Only a couple more weeks before Study Leave, though, where he could concentrate on revising at his own pace for the A-Level exams coming up.
It was one of those unusually warm late spring days, and Dominic was glad he’d brought a water bottle with him. Even shaded by the trees, he was sweating slightly. He decided to pull his t-shirt off and stuffed it into his shorts pocket. This wasn’t unusual for him, as while he was not very confident about his body, he found his skin always seemed a little clearer after being exposed to sunlight. Like most teenagers, he’d had his share of jibes from schoolmates about his body and other things, and his youth pastor had always told them to be modest, and even shouted at some of the boys once when they’d taken their tops off for an impromptu game of shirts-vs-skins football. Dominic wasn’t sure how he felt about this – after all, weren’t they supposed to be made in the image of God? So why was showing that image shameful?
As he came over the rise in the forest trail which told him he was nearing the lake, he could tell there was something different. He rarely heard anything other than birdsong, the breeze in the trees, and the occasional scurrying of small rodents in the undergrowth, but today there was something more. A little further, and he realized he could hear splashing and laughter. This was strange; nobody came to ‘his’ part of the forest! There was a little pebbly beach near the water that he sometimes sat on to read… maybe someone else had discovered it? He hoped they wouldn’t leave a mess.
Dominic caught his breath as he neared the tree line and looked down towards the water. There were two… no, three… girls there, splashing in the shallow water by the shore, and he could see a lot more skin than he was used to. He paused, unsure of what to do next. Should he turn around and ignore what he’d seen, or go and say hello? He knew he couldn’t stay where he was, watching them, as that would look very creepy, but as he turned to step away, one of the girls called out.
“Dominic! Pryvit!”
He turned immediately, recognizing the accent. It was Mila, one of the new girls at his church.
“Er… hi Mila! I didn’t expect to see you here,” he replied, blushing. He wasn’t quite sure where to look.
“You come to have swim with us?” she asked.
“I was just walking in the forest. I didn’t bring my swim shorts.”
“Why wear clothes to swim? It’s silly, they get wet, you get cold. Skin much better, dries quickly.”
He admitted she had a point, but he was embarrassed. He didn’t have much experience with girls, and had certainly never been naked with any.
“But isn’t it wrong to be naked in public?”
“Why wrong? God made us naked, said it ‘very good’. Why be ashamed? In my country, we always swim naked. Naked is innocent. I hate wearing swimsuit,” she replied.
She was right! All of a sudden, the conflicting thoughts in his head made sense. All the times he’d been told by his pastor and youth leader that the body was shameful and should be covered, but they could never answer why. How had they gotten so far off the right track? Of course, the body should be cherished; it was a wonderful creation! But he still had to take his shorts off. He turned his back to the girls.
“Don’t be shy, Dominic. We have seen boys before,” said one of the younger girls. He thought her name was Luba or Luna; she was Mila’s younger sister. The other girl he recognized as Anya, maybe their cousin. She didn’t say very much… Dominic’s friend Nick said he’d heard she was still suffering with trauma from what she’d experienced during the invasion. But this afternoon she was smiling more than he’d ever seen her.
He kicked off his shoes, dropped his shorts and boxers in one, and… nothing happened. The sun didn’t fall out of the sky, his skin didn’t erupt in blisters, the birds didn’t start flying backwards. It was just normal. Except he was naked. Outside. In public. And it felt good!
“Come and swim!”
“Luna, don’t rush him. This is new experience,” Mila said to her sister. Then, turning to him, “see, this is good, yes?”
“Yes, this feels great! I’ve never done this before. The sun and air everywhere feels great! I’m coming in!” And with that, he ran into the cool lake water. Unfortunately he’d only gotten to mid-thigh depth when he slipped on something slimy and unceremoniously face-planted into the water. That caused a big laugh from all three girls, and, blushing slightly, the spluttering Dominic joined in.
The four teenagers played in the water for another ten minutes or so, but the lake water was cold, so soon they returned to the shore to warm up. Dominic was a little awkward at first, but the three girls just laid out confidently on the smooth stones, as if they’d been doing this all their lives. Which, he thought, they probably had. So, he thought “when in Rome…” and joined them. It was so peaceful, and the sun was warm enough to dry them quickly.
After a short time, an alarm sounded from a phone buried somewhere in a pile of clothes. It was Luna’s.
“Time to go ride horses. Get dressed, Anya,” she said. “Are you coming, Mila?”
“I think I’ll stay here with Dominic a bit longer, if that’s OK?” she turned to him.
“Yes, of course,” he said, surprised. The two younger girls quickly pulled on their shorts and t-shirts, slipped on their shoes, and ran off down the beach, the opposite way from the track he’d taken. “They don’t wear underwear?” he asked Mila.
“Of course not. Panties are unnecessary, and bras are very unhealthy. Only wear if you need one,” she replied, “like to play sport.” He’d never heard this before. But he was learning many new things today!
“You come to lake often?” she asked him.
“I try to walk in the forest as often as possible. I love being in nature. It seems to be good for my skin, and helps clear my head,” he replied. “But I’ve never swum in the lake before. And definitely never skinny-dipped.”
“You English are funny,” she said. “God made us like this. Swim clothes are pointless. You’re right, the sun is good on your skin. Look at me, no spots from sweaty clothes. So why do you cover up so much? This is legal, I think?”
“Yes, I believe so… about twenty years ago the law changed so naturists wouldn’t be arrested.” He’d read that somewhere recently.
“Naturists?” she asked.
“People who don’t wear clothes. Nudists,” he replied.
“You have special name for them!” she exclaimed. “We are just people. People who like to be free.”
“You’re right. Today has been great, I felt so free! I was nervous at first…” he began.
“Nervous why? Because you see girls? Because we see you?”
“Both, I guess. I’ve always been a bit insecure. And I didn’t know how I felt about how my body looks.”
“Doesn’t matter what body looks like,” she retorted. “All bodies are beautiful. All made by God. Natural is good. Naked is good. When you see people as they are, you know how you will grow up. No fear!”
“You’re right, I wish I’d known that before. Anyway, as soon as I fell into the water, I realised you were laughing at my spectacular dive, not my body. And all my fears went away.”
Mila smiled. “It was funny. Made Anya laugh. She doesn’t laugh much.”
“I noticed that. Do you know what happened?”
“She saw…” her smile faded, and she took a breath. “She saw our uncle… her father. He got shot. She was hiding.”
“Oh goodness, I’m so sorry. Thank you for telling me,” Dominic replied. “Were you nearby?”
“We lived outside city. On farm. Anya and her mother and brother came to us that day. Two days later, we left on the train.” Dominic could see tears beginning to form in her eyes.
“I don’t know what to say,” he replied. “At least you’re safe here. And I hope you are finding happiness.”
“It is peaceful here. I like,” her smile returned. “People are nice. People like you. You make me feel safe.”
“I’m just trying to be a good Christian,” he said. “We’re supposed to love our neighbours. Especially those in need.”
“More than that,” she said, and leaned over to give him a quick peck on the cheek. He blushed. Could he be falling in love, lying here on the beach naked with this beautiful foreign girl?
“You… you’ve been good for us too,” he stumbled over his words slightly. “You showed us more of the world. Who our neighbours are. And today you showed me that skinny-dipping is fun, and that nudity is innocent. I think I always knew that deep down, but I always struggled with what the church told me.”
“Is what church teaches more important than what Bible says?” she asked.
“No, of course not,” he replied.
“Then read Bible. Lots of nudity. Not forbidden.”
“I’m certainly going to look more deeply into that,” Dominic replied. “I don’t think everything we’re taught is right, either by the church or the media.”
“Media very wrong. All about sex,” she interjected. “Nudity not sex. Nudity is about health and confidence… And innocence, after all we are born naked!”
“You’re right,” he realised. “All this time, I’ve been here naked with you, and it’s not been sexual. Not that you aren’t very pretty.”
“Thank you,” she smiled again. “But beauty not about sex either. Beauty about what is good with God’s creation. Beautiful flowers. Beautiful trees. Beautiful lake. Beautiful Dominic.” She blushed.
“I feel the same. I just sense it more today.” He paused. “Listen, are you coming to Youth Group tonight?”
“Of course,”
“How about we go and grab a burger or something before we go? It’s starting to get on, and I’m feeling hungry.”
Mila paused again. “I don’t have money with me. And I must tell mother. She doesn’t have phone.”
“No problem, I can pay. If we walk together, we can get my car. Then I can drive you home and you can speak to her”
“Very good,” she smiled. “Let us go.” And she picked up her clothes.
“Like this?” Dominic asked. They were both still naked.
“Why not? At least for little while,” Mila replied. “I love walking naked, and nobody else is here. We can be, how you say, naturist?”
So off they walked, feeling the soft grass beneath their feet, and the dappled sunlight and gentle breeze all over their bodies. Dominic could not stop smiling. Not only had he gotten to know a beautiful girl much better, but he’d also discovered the joy of being naked outside. If he never got to experience it again, he would never forget it. But he was determined to do this more often, especially with Mila.
The young couple were nearly at the edge of the forest when they stopped to dress. Dominic wasn’t surprised to see Mila going braless, but noticed she was not wearing any panties either, but simply pulled up her denim shorts. She caught him looking.
“I told you, underwear has no purpose,” she said. “Just tight, uncomfortable. Makes you sweaty and itchy. Only wear when it’s my monthly time.”
“I had never thought about it,” he replied. “I’ve just always worn it. I think most people do. You’ve caused me to question a lot that I thought was true.”
She simply smiled, took his hand, and they walked towards the town together. There was nobody in when they got to Dominic’s house.
“Dad works late,” he explained, “and Mum has a parents’ evening tonight. She’s a teacher. I was going to be fixing my own dinner anyway. Let me just find my car keys, and grab my Bible, then we can go.”
A few minutes later they pulled up in front of Mila’s home. It was a small, terraced house in a poorer area of town, but it was clean and tidy, with colourful flowers in boxes on every windowsill. The front yard, just a patch of scruffy grass in front of most of the neighbours’, had clearly been cultivated to grow a small selection of herbs and vegetables.
“It’s not much, but it’s ours. We want it to be nice,” Mila explained. “Wait here, back in a moment.”
And with a flourish, she bounded up to the front door. Barely a minute later, she returned, but not alone. With her was an attractive older lady with greying blonde hair and a stern if friendly face.
“Mum wanted to meet you,” Mila said.
“You good boy. I see you at church. You take care of Mila,” her mum instructed.
“Yes, ma’am, I’ll do my best!” Dominic replied. “She’s a special girl.” Mila blushed.
“Povodʹsya dobre! Ne zapiznyuysya,” the older lady said to her, then smiled and turned back to the house.
“What was that?” Dominic asked.
“Oh, she told me to behave, and not be late,” Mila replied. “She trusts me, but always says that!”
“I get it. She just wants you to be safe. And don’t worry, I’ll bring you right home after youth! But we’d better hurry if we want to grab that burger without having to eat too fast.” So Mila got back into the car and they headed into the centre of town.
Thankfully there was no queue at the drive-thru. “They seem to serve drivers quicker than walk-ins,” Dominic explained. “What can I get you?”
“Chicken burger, please. And an iced tea.”
“No fries?”
“No thanks. Trying to stay a bit healthy at least!”
“Understood. Again, just never thought of it. Always just order a meal, even though the chips aren’t very good! I’m learning so much from you today.”
The intercom buzzed. “Can I take your order?”
“Oh, hi. Can I get a chicken burger, a bacon cheeseburger, an iced tea and a Sprite, please? No fries, thanks”
“No problem. Please drive forward to window two.”
As it was still a nice day, they decided not to eat in the car; instead, they parked up and moved to one of the picnic tables on the grass. It was noisy by the road, but still nice to be in the early evening sunshine. Dominic unconsciously began pulling at the collar of his t-shirt.
“Naked is better, yes?” Mila teased. “You can take it off!”
“I know, but you probably shouldn’t, and that’s not fair. We should be equal,” he replied.
“Thought it was OK to be naked?” she asked.
“Legal, yes… but you can still get into trouble for it. Particularly by a busy road. Causing a nuisance, or something like that. And private property can set its own rules. So better not risk anyone calling the police.”
“It’s so sad,” she replied. “We should be free to be as God made us. So healthy. So natural…”
“Hopefully one day,” Dominic agreed. “But there’s a lot of conservative people to educate first. This country has a long way to go before freedom truly means freedom!”
“Maybe we start something new?” Mila suggested. “All new things start somewhere. If enough people do something, it starts to become normal, yes? So we just need more young people to join us. They will all feel better for it, you saw that today. Naked is good!”
“That’s a great idea!” he exclaimed. “Maybe we should talk to some of our friends at youth group?”
But when they got to the church hall, it was clear that Clive, the Youth Pastor, already had something on his mind. He was pacing the floor as they settled down to begin the meeting.
“I’ve been hearing disturbing reports,” he began, “of teens skinny-dipping at the lake! I really hope none of you would consider getting involved in this debauchery!”
“Hang on,” Dominic had to speak up. “What’s debauched about it?”
“Well, it’s a sin to be naked!”
“Says who?” piped up Sofia, a usually quiet girl, who was seated on the sofa with her friends.
“Sofia’s right,” Dominic said. “There’s nothing in the Bible condemning skinny dipping. Or any non-sexual nudity.”
“Dominic, please,” Clive was starting to get red. “As a senior member of our youth, you should know better. Of course, nudity is a sin. It has to be!”
Mila spoke up. “Why would God create anything shameful? Bible says He made us very good. The world made it wrong, not God.”
Pastor Clive looked flustered at that. “Well, what about all the teaching about sexual immorality?”
“Tell me, Pastor Clive,” Dominic replied. “Can you have sex with your clothes on?”
“Well, yes…”
“And sex between a married couple isn’t immoral anyway, right?”
“Of course not!”
“So then, if not all sex is immoral… and nudity has nothing to do with sex anyway… why is nudity immoral?”
Clive looked defeated. “I need to go away and do some further reading on this,” he admitted.
“Lots of nudity in the Bible,” Mila stated. “Never condemned”
“Mila’s right,” Dominic confirmed. “God made man innocent and naked in His image. We should be embracing that state, not shaming it. It wasn’t God that told Adam the image of God was indecent!”
“It was the serpent!” Steve exclaimed from across the room. “The Lord of lies!”
“You’re right, Steve,” confirmed Dominic. “And yes, I have been skinny-dipping at the lake. Today in fact, and it was amazing! No wet swimsuit, you dry quickly and naturally. It’s healthy, the sun on your skin is wonderful. It helped the acne on my back no end when I started walking without my shirt in the forest. Why shouldn’t we be free to have that sensation all over?”
“Okay, okay,” Pastor Clive admitted. “I need to think about this. But if you’re sure nothing untoward is happening there, I guess I was hasty to condemn it.”
Just then, Joseph, a bookish 16-year-old who was known for his extensive knowledge of scripture, spoke up. “Remember Proverbs 18 verse 13, Pastor. Spouting off before listening to the facts is both shameful and foolish.”
“Quite!” the Pastor replied sheepishly. “Maybe we need to have more discussion on this. Dominic, as you seem to be well versed in the subject, would you lead off?”
“Well, I only discovered the joy of it today. From Mila and Luna actually. They showed me not to be ashamed of who I am. But there was something remarkable about it. Being naked in nature is just natural. It feels right, like God intended us to be! Swimming without shorts was the best sensation…”
And with that, the conversation continued, with several other young people, some unexpected, contributing their positive experiences of nude beaches on holidays, naked hiking, and skinny-dipping. Other than admitting some initial shyness, nobody had anything negative to say. There were some eyes opened that evening to the wonderful benefits of being bare!