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MONDAY NIGHT: THE FIRST DAY OF THE SCHOOL YEAR
“I still don’t understand. How does showing your boobs and private parts to anyone that wants to look lead to a quality education?” My husband Jim asked my daughter to re-explain the NIS Program she had already gone over a few times.
“The Naked in School Program was piloted in Europe before moving to the United States. It’s spread to more than 20,000 high schools, and tens of thousands of students have participated in it, Dad. How do you not know about it?” Julie countered.
Jim and I knew all about the Program. It started after I graduated high school and caused a great deal of controversy with early adopters, who saw it as obscene and a distraction from education. Jim echoed many of the same tired arguments my parents made when we first learned about them.
“I still don’t see how any actual education happens, like math and science, while people are staring at each other’s private parts.”
“That’s the thing, Dad. When someone enters the Program, they don’t have private parts.” She began to offer an enlightened and mature view of the human body, that it was just skin. We had sexualized and fetishized certain parts of the body to make them feel ‘dirty’ and ‘shameful.’ “They aren’t a secret. It’s just society that defines whether female tits are naughty and men’s chests are acceptable in public.”
Her younger brothers, Reese and Dewey, were snickering at the dinner table. Jim gave them a sidelong glance to remind them to keep their comments to themselves.
“The human body is part of that education, and learning to accept nudity and deal with it without it being a distraction or a novelty is part of the experience,” Julie said. She rattled off the benefits: “Its goals are to teach body positivity and body acceptance. The Program removes the stigma about the body by revealing it to curious teenagers. The Program has led to a 64% decrease in teen pregnancy, as girls have become less inquisitive and less eager to engage in sexual activities due to their increased awareness of what boys possess. Sex crimes are down 32% among teenagers because bringing nudity out into the open, talking about it, and demonstrating it alleviates feelings of sexual repression. Our generation doesn’t experience kink-shaming, so we don’t rebel by acting like sluts because we have healthier attitudes about our bodies and sexuality.”
When I was a kid, I used to have nightmares where I somehow forgot my clothes and attended school completely naked. In the dream, I would panic and run around trying to hide myself, but somehow if I did find something to wear it fell off, had holes in it, or blew off with the wind. I think many people had that same dream. In my dreams, Everyone laughed and pointed at me, and I was ashamed of my nudity. I wondered if it would feel that in the NIS Program.
I imagine that the founder of the NIS (Naked in School) Program probably had those dreams and aimed to normalize them so that should they ever attend class in the buff, it would be perfectly acceptable.
I’ve always known that my daughter Julie would volunteer for the Program. It’s mandatory for students in some counties, but it’s still voluntary in Arkansas. The Program offers incentives like college credit and tuition assistance for college students, but usually, only about 8 or 9 students in Julie’s high school volunteer at the same time.
I doubted Reese would have the maturity to join the Program. After he came to breakfast, he often had difficulty hiding his boner in his underwear. I doubted the school wanted my son’s erect penis to be constantly on display. My youngest son, Dewey, was a different story. He was shy and sensitive but incredibly curious. I assumed he would probably volunteer for the Program when he was a little older.
The NIS Program was open to freshmen (9th graders) like Dewey. Still, as far as I knew, it generally appealed to upperclassmen like Julie, who would be looking for help going to college. They were usually much more mature about nudity.
Nudity is everywhere these days. It was the 2040s now, and society had progressed in many ways and regressed in some as well. There was no going back though, nudity was now on billboards and publicly legal anywhere.
Social media exposed the kids to nudity, it was everywhere and mainstream online. Nudity was also legal in public spaces. We didn’t see that many naked people in stores or restaurants, but every now and then, we would. Not everyone was open-minded, and some stores had a “no nudity” policy. I thought Jim was okay with public nudity, but probably the fact that it was his daughter who wanted to join the Program made him apprehensive.
“You sound like you are reading that off of a pamphlet,” Jim observed.
“All of that information and more is in the pamphlet I showed you, Daddy! It’s my senior year, and I want to do NIS this year.”
“Are you going to attend your prom naked?” Jim asked pointedly to help our daughter think about the consequences of volunteering for an entire year in the Program.
“Why not? It will save on prom dresses. “Julie was only half-joking. My husband is notoriously cheap, and saving money was one way to actually reason with him. I could tell he wasn’t convinced.
“It’s still up to me and your mother.” Jim looked at me for support. I wasn’t opposed to my daughter participating in NIS because I knew so many other teenagers did. It was still shocking that she wanted to participate. I distinctly recall Tiffany making fun of some of the girls who were in the Program when she was younger.
“In Arkansas, I just have to be 16 to sign up if I want,” my daughter reminded us stubbornly. Our state had lowered the age of consent, precisely because younger people were more mature about sexuality.
“Then why are you asking me?” Jim was frustrated by the conversation.
“I want you to support me when I take NIS this year,” she explained, waving the pamphlet to offer it to us. “There is a special Program this year, and I wanted to see if Mom was interested.”
I was flattered by the offer. Julie and I used to be inseparable when she was younger. She was like my little shadow, wanting to go everywhere that I went. As Julie started to mature, she had less and less time to hang out with me. Because I was a stay-at-home mom, I had plenty of free time, and I was interested in what she had to say.
“Oh no, you aren’t roping your mother and me into this,” Jim insisted.
“Jim, let’s hear her out. What is the Program, dear?” I asked politely as I leafed through the pamphlet. It featured a lot of naked younger women, as well as some women my age. They were all pregnant.
My daughter explained that if I agreed to the Program, she would receive 12 college credits for electives and a full scholarship to West Arkansas University. It wasn’t the most prestigious university, but it was fairly close. I liked the sound of that. College tuition was so expensive.
Jim seemed skeptical and unmoved by my daughter’s sales pitch. He was stubborn just like her.
“You would also receive $50,000 as a base stipend after successfully completing the Program!” Julie said excitedly.
That was a lot of money! Jim seemed a little moved by the sound of that, but it was still practical. He asked how long the Program would last.
My daughter assured me that we would do it together and face it together. I didn’t tell her about the dreams I used to have, but she could sense my apprehension and she was very reassuring.
“About 9 months, give it or take,” Julie answered that the Program lasted pretty much the entire school year. My kids had only just started school the new school year. I’d have to go with her the following day to sign up and be evaluated.
“Mom, would you be in the NIS Program?” Dewey asked me brightly when it came up.
My heart began to race. Until I heard my youngest son say, “IN the NIS Program,” it really hadn’t hit me that I would be one of those naked women in the pamphlet. My parents were still alive and visited us sometimes. My immediate reaction was to blush and start thinking about how I’d explain any of this to them, or to my neighbors and friends.
“Are you going to walk around my school with your boobs out?” Reese added with a smirk. His father glared at him.
“Would my being naked at your school upset you?” I asked. I wasn’t a natural nudist, but I had walked around in front of my boys in bras and pants before. I hadn’t thought much about it. I wasn’t a fuddy duddy, but I also wasn’t a total extrovert.
“No, I think it’s cool!”
“Well, I might, but with all the younger girls there, I doubt many people will be looking at what I have,” I said. I was glad that Reese said he was comfortable with me being naked. I wouldn’t want him to be ashamed of me.
“All the women in this pamphlet are pregnant, Julie.” After I finished looking over the pamphlet, I slid it to her father to read it.
“It’s a new Breeder Program,” Julie said.
My heart sank. “Breeder” didn’t sound appealing. I didn’t like the sound of it.
“The breeding what-now?” Jim’s mouth dropped open. Everyone else at the table, including Reese and Dewey, seemed shocked.
“This year, there are six slots for Breeders. A loving family gets to adopt the baby, and at the end, we educate students on the miracles of birth. We will demonstrate the entire process and destigmatize pregnancy while teaching healthy birthing techniques and alternative lifestyle choices.”
I was intrigued on some level. It sounded so far out and over the top that I couldn’t believe the school was serious. I had always wanted a much bigger family, but after three kids, Jim decided that was all we could afford.
I knew I was still fertile, but I wasn’t in my prime any longer. My large breasts had dropped and become jiggly. I usually wore tight bras that never fit right. They just didn’t make them for my boob size. I also wore baggy clothes so that I could hide them. I felt like they made me look fat.
I also possessed significantly more curves than when I was the same age as my daughter. My butt had widened, and I felt like I’d probably scare some of the kids at school if they saw me naked. I wasn’t petite and cute like the young teenagers that were in the Program now.
“So, basically, a surrogate mother?” Jim asked for clarification on what my role would be in the Program. I had the same general idea that is what I’d be.
My daughter didn’t understand the term. She squinted in confusion, repeating that it was a Breeder Program and that a loving family would adopt the child shortly after birth. She said that the Breeder Program had additional responsibilities to adjust societal norms and behavior modification, but it went over my head.
“That means the same thing,” Jim clarified for her. “The answer is obvious.” Jim paused and looked at me. I was excited about the prospect of doing this.
My daughter started to counter with her own arguments about why the Program would be beneficial for all parties. I cleared my throat. I didn’t like confrontation, but I wanted to make my own thoughts on the matter clear.
“Jim, think about the money? We could pay off the house and have something left over to take the kids on a proper vacation.”
“You are seriously considering this?” Jim asked me. Before he rejected my daughter’s suggestion, he had not asked me my thoughts. I felt like he was being rhetorical, because my husband had already made up his mind.
“I’d like to discuss it. It’s obviously a big change for all of us,” I said.
“Why would an adoptive family want an older woman to bear the child?” Jim changed the subject and asked Julie to explain. “Why wouldn’t you be the Breeder?”
That was a fair point, although I doubted my husband would be comfortable with Julie going through with it.
“It is open for teenage girls to enter the Program, and I thought about joining as a Breeder if mom really doesn’t want to do it, but I think I’d rather be a Trainer.”
“A Trainer?” Jim asked while arching an eyebrow.
As her Trainer, I would work closely with Mom. I’d make sure she eats right, does her exercises, and supervises her so that the baby is healthy. The program also demonstrates a healthy alternative lifestyle and a functional partnership between two participants. We’ll be partnered up!”
“In my day, we let kids take home eggs and pretend they were babies for a week.” Jim was flabbergasted by the revelation.
“Every Breeder gets a personal Trainer who can be with them all the time, and as long as mom has a healthy womb and a willingness to come with me to school every day and participate in the Program, then there is even bonus money.”
The thought of a “personal Trainer” sounded good. I could stand to get in shape, but I was also understandably nervous and apprehensive.
“You keep saying alternative lifestyle; what does that mean?” I asked.
“In most relationships, both parents are equal decision-makers,” she explained. The words hung heavy in the air for a moment as I realized that really wasn’t the case in my marriage. My husband controlled the money and the big expenditures and never did any housework. Our boys were old enough that they did most of the yard work, and Jim was the breadwinner. “We are teaching that it is okay to voluntarily enter into a relationship with one decision-maker and build trust and understanding.”
“So, you have to do everything that Julie tells you?” Dewey’s eyes grew wide with excited apprehension as he realized what my daughter was implying.
“I am not going to make you do anything that isn’t part of the Program, Mom,” Julie assured me.
I had butterflies in my stomach as my pulse quickened. I knew that, as a mother, I should completely refuse to participate in Julie’s Program. It sounded so far out and over the top. I’d never heard of parents being involved before, and certainly not as “Breeders”.
However, Julie was old enough to be an adult, and taking on a more active leadership role might do her some good. The money sounded great, and I really didn’t have that much to do as a stay-at-home mom now that my kids were in high school.
“So, if you can tell me what to do, does that mean you can just ignore me if I have to ground you?”
“I just won’t do anything to get in trouble, I have to be on my best behavior to maintain my standing in the Program, Mom. If anything does come up, then Dad can handle it.”
I tried to imagine what it would have been like to turn the tables on my own mother at that age. She was strong-willed and stubborn. I couldn’t imagine her ever agreeing to any Program like this. My lips quivered a little as I imagined a scenario where I could trust Julie to make good choices for me, and Jim to step up taking care of the kids.
Jim grinned. He could see that my confidence in doing this was wavering. I didn’t want him to be right, but this seemed like it might be too much change all at once.
“Dad would have to step up and take a more active role in raising us. He’d still be able to punish me, just like you would. You’d have to listen to me and do what I tell you. It would be a conflict of interest if I were constantly afraid of the threat of consequences from you for doing my job as your Trainer,” Julie continued to explain.
“Yeah, it would be like if the Referee is afraid to call you out at the ball game, because you could fire him from his job,” Reese offered a simplistic analogy. Julie actually agreed with him for once.
“Still want to do this, Brittany?” Jim had a smug, shit-eating grin on his face as he took a bite of the stew I had made. It was his favorite beef stew with a dash of Guinness beer. I made it for him at least twice a week even though the kids had grown tired of it, he never did.
“I need to think about this,” I said to my daughter. I was definitely unsure about it. It sounded unbelievable to me.
“That means she isn’t going to do it,” Jim guffawed. He was right, It usually does. I was intrigued, but nervous about the repercussions.
“Mom, my grade is based on my performance as a Trainer. That means they’ll be testing and evaluating us both. If I am unfair, unrealistic, or go beyond the parameters of the Program, then they will remove me as your Trainer and flunk me. I have no interest in going through this process only to fail.”
That made sense to me. I was back on board with trying it until Reese mentioned “reasonable requests.” I had a passing familiarity with that term as part of the NIS Program. When I was younger, the campus stigmatized it as sex.
“You and I both will have to take reasonable requests. There are some differences between Trainers and Breeders, but the good news is that you won’t have to say yes to them. I will decide if they are appropriate.”
“What kind of things are reasonable requests?”
“I won’t kid you. There are some perverts, like Reese, who give the Program a bad name and try to get their jollies from it. She sneered at her younger brother.
“It isn’t just getting a good long look, though, is it? It’s touchy-touchy?” Reese cupped his hands like he was cupping a boob.
Julie sighed. “Stop trying to scare Mom,” she said.
“If you are going to do the Program, you need to know what you are getting yourself into,” Reese countered. He was right about that. The unknown factor of what could and couldn’t happen was driving me mad with anticipation and fear. If I had some exhaustive list of what reasonable requests included, I might be able to make a more informed decision.
“Orientation is tomorrow. Come with me. They will examine you and give you the complete details before you sign up! You can meet the other Breeders and talk to Ms. Collins, the NIS Coordinator, and ask them any questions you have.”
“What do you say, Jim?” I asked my husband for his opinion.
“Let me think.” Jim seemed like he was going to be reasonable for a change. “Some teenage boys, along with my teenage daughter, would be groping my wife and showing everything normally reserved for me in the bedroom to total strangers as they cavorted around the high school completely naked.”
I wanted to cut him off and address his concerns. I tried to say that I wouldn’t be the only one doing it, and since I am probably not the most attractive, I doubt I’d be very popular with teenage boys.
“Let me finish,” Jim continued sternly. “Then would you get pregnant with someone else’s DNA and have their baby for nine months?” What about me? What about my comforts?”
“Jim, think about the money at the end of the Program,” I said.
“It’s $50,000 per healthy baby. If you have twins or triplets, it would be a real pay day,” Julie added. We could send all the kids to college on that much money and have money left over.
“I could buy a boat AND an RV,” Jim chuckled before asking in a more serious tone, “I don’t understand why rich assholes need to pay surrogates in high schools or their moms when there are probably tons of kids up for adoption.” Jim squirreled up his face and seemed to be stubbornly opposed to any of us participating in the Program regardless of the financial compensation. “If you want to do this, don’t come crying to me the first time you want to change your mind.”
I was surprised by what my husband had just said. “Did you just say that I could do this?”
“I don’t know that I have much of a choice if you really want to volunteer, but I don’t think it’s a good idea, and I think you will regret it.”
I kissed and hugged Jim affectionately, telling him I would decide when I went to the orientation. I promised my daughter that I’d keep an open mind.
“That’s all anyone can ask, Mom!!”
I started to clear the table and put the dishes in the dishwasher. That was the signal for the rest of the family to go back to their televisions, video games, or cell phones for the night. Julie hung around after dinner to talk.
“I suppose I would have to ask your permission before I can clear the table?” I joked.
“I don’t think it’s going to be that strict, Mom. I’ll be honest; I don’t actually know what to expect. Only six high schools nationwide are testing this brand-new experimental Program.
“Oh, I am so glad to be the guinea pig,” I quipped, and gave her a wry grin.
“They ran the Program for three years in colleges and universities before adapting it for high school students,” Julie explained.
“How do you know so much about the Program?” I asked as I bent over and put away the dishes.
“We learn about it in middle school, so that by the time we get to high school, it isn’t a mega-shock to the system to see students walking around bare ass.”
“I hate to say that I agree with your father, but I do think it might be a distraction to learning the old-fashioned three R’s.”
“What are the three R’s, Mom?”
“Reading, Writing, and Arithmetic,” I responded in a sing-song manner, recalling my childhood education.
“Only one of those words starts with an R; no wonder you guys grew up so backward and repressed,” Julie laughed. I had never thought about it, but she was correct. Julie was a sharp girl, and I admired that about her.
“I may be able to impart some numerical knowledge: knot, plus double knot, equals ... I have no formal edge-you-kaytion.” In this remark, I emulated the archetypal hillbilly Jethro Bodeen from the classic television series “Beverly Hillbillies.”
My daughter and I had a hearty giggle, even though Julie didn’t get the reference. I enjoyed talking to her one-on-one. She had grown up so fast that she already looked almost like an adult woman. Julie was blonde, like me, and had her father’s blue eyes. In her junior year (11th grade), she had been so busy being a cheerleader, school clubs, and dating boys that she really didn’t have time for me.
“How is this going to impact your dating life?” I asked when we were alone.
“That’s a good question,” my daughter admitted. “I know that I’ve just about had it with guys, and I am probably ready to switch to girls permanently,” she teased before explaining that she’d have to devote most of her time to the Program.
“Surely, they will give you some personal time.”
“As I said, I really don’t know all the details about Trainers and Breeders. I just know that you and I will spend a lot more time together in the very near future.”
“Would you actually like that?” I asked my daughter if she’d really like to spend time with me, as I made up my mind.
“You bet!” Julie smiled at me. She had such a pretty, confident smile. She had her father’s smile. It was one of the reasons I first noticed him in high school. My husband had a devil-may-care look about him when we first met. Sixteen years of marriage had made it so that neither of us really smiled all that much anymore. We were too busy raising the kids, paying bills, and doing the mundane things we had to do in life.
“I’d like that too,” I admitted. I wasn’t 100% percent sure, but I was intrigued enough that I’d go see what it was all about. I could always say no and go home.
“I know, and I love you, Mom. This relationship may change how we interact with each other for the next nine months, but I want you to know that I love you very much and that will never change.”
I was speechless. Her words really moved me. All I could do was smile at my daughter with pride.