My "Sex" Education
In the 50's sex education was "done" differently than today- WAY differently. No one talked about it, the word itself was banned from any one's lips, as a "four" letter word... I guess we could not even count in those days.
My Mom was really up on education in all ways, and insisted on watching WCET.. We always watched the National Geographic Specials, and therefore we HAD to get the yellow framed magazines each month, and that is where most children our generation got their s** education. We waited, and watched, for the brown paper covered magazines to arrive each month. Then we carefully turned each page, (of course no adults could be IN the room) looking at the pictures. That was Sex Education in the 50's. We then simply mentioned, "Did you see the National Geographic this week?" to our friends, and they knew what was "big". We did not mention anything at all. Just nodded knowingly and smiled. And Mom continued ordering the magazines, just so thrilled to know we were reading educational materials so eagerly.
These were the years that Elvis was banned from TV, or at least the bottom of him. Yes, he wiggled too much. Only the top was considered okay for us to see. I guess it was a part of the same "movement" that kept us from having discussions about s** and knowledge about everything that was afoot.
In school things were interesting, since "Health and Marriage" classes were taught with "boys" by a "Man" teacher, and "girls" by a "Woman". It turned out badly for me, since I had decided that Ms. Blasdale(I believe was her name) was not fit to teach the class(my haughty decision) because she was a divorcee! Yohoho and a bottle of rum...She attempted in vain to teach the part about abstinence, the parts of the body, maturation, menstruation, etc, but all in vain, because at every point I knew better. I had the National Geographic at home, a God for a Father, and would NOT be taught by a lowly divorcee. After being thrown out of class numerous times, I failed Health and Marriage some called it, Sex Education. I would like to apologize to that patient teacher, and hope she understands from what a crazy upbringing I came.
I cannot think of one thing I learned in that sex education class taught at school that I did not know before, but talking about it in school was embarrassing to us all. The environment was out of our comfort zone, and the topics were taboo, so that it was a class lacking in all. Possibly a non-graded workshop or seminar with information available by slightly older peers might have worked. I don't know how to make this idea work in those days, but the fact that some one tried is commendable, and I was a problem at that time.
I also read "How your body works" books. How useless are those! When you don't have someone right there, talking about the "ins and outs" of a love relationship, about the sweat on the brow, the creaks in the bedsprings, how unreal is the information! Every person is unique, and unless we relay that to our children they will believe that sex is all the same and lacking the emotions. We need to tell them, from one moment to the next it changes- one day to the next. Nothing stays the same. In the books, it does not tell you that. The minister or priest do not even tell you that, they try to tell you the opposite, that you should try to "keep everything the same". How is that possible? I am not the same I was, just look at the photos from my past. We change constantly. What we expect from each other, from sex changes. What satisfies us, our partner. And certainly what is in our mind changes, so that it seriously effects what we do.
We now watch a lot of TV and Movies and Cable TV with movies and videos with violence and writhing dancers. It is nothing for us to see at the age of 2 what our parents did not let us see at 16. Sex is no longer a dirty word, but words are all used as if none are four letter words at all. I use all the information I can to help my children get wise before they get wrong information from the other teens at school or from the media.They are bombarded with wrong information and sexual stimulation from a young age. I make a point of telling them what words mean so that they KNOW what they are saying. Do they want to be using dirty language? We don't need to when we have a rich vocabulary and can use other words to express ourselves.
I surely don't want the repressive time to return, where s** was a dirty word, but haven't we gone the other way a bit too far, where a baby hears m***f**** in just about every song and movie? When we see sexual behaviors night and day on TV and when clothes are so sexual as a rule? I would not mind a little more modesty in all areas, what do you think friends?
My Mom was really up on education in all ways, and insisted on watching WCET.. We always watched the National Geographic Specials, and therefore we HAD to get the yellow framed magazines each month, and that is where most children our generation got their s** education. We waited, and watched, for the brown paper covered magazines to arrive each month. Then we carefully turned each page, (of course no adults could be IN the room) looking at the pictures. That was Sex Education in the 50's. We then simply mentioned, "Did you see the National Geographic this week?" to our friends, and they knew what was "big". We did not mention anything at all. Just nodded knowingly and smiled. And Mom continued ordering the magazines, just so thrilled to know we were reading educational materials so eagerly.
These were the years that Elvis was banned from TV, or at least the bottom of him. Yes, he wiggled too much. Only the top was considered okay for us to see. I guess it was a part of the same "movement" that kept us from having discussions about s** and knowledge about everything that was afoot.
In school things were interesting, since "Health and Marriage" classes were taught with "boys" by a "Man" teacher, and "girls" by a "Woman". It turned out badly for me, since I had decided that Ms. Blasdale(I believe was her name) was not fit to teach the class(my haughty decision) because she was a divorcee! Yohoho and a bottle of rum...She attempted in vain to teach the part about abstinence, the parts of the body, maturation, menstruation, etc, but all in vain, because at every point I knew better. I had the National Geographic at home, a God for a Father, and would NOT be taught by a lowly divorcee. After being thrown out of class numerous times, I failed Health and Marriage some called it, Sex Education. I would like to apologize to that patient teacher, and hope she understands from what a crazy upbringing I came.
I cannot think of one thing I learned in that sex education class taught at school that I did not know before, but talking about it in school was embarrassing to us all. The environment was out of our comfort zone, and the topics were taboo, so that it was a class lacking in all. Possibly a non-graded workshop or seminar with information available by slightly older peers might have worked. I don't know how to make this idea work in those days, but the fact that some one tried is commendable, and I was a problem at that time.
I also read "How your body works" books. How useless are those! When you don't have someone right there, talking about the "ins and outs" of a love relationship, about the sweat on the brow, the creaks in the bedsprings, how unreal is the information! Every person is unique, and unless we relay that to our children they will believe that sex is all the same and lacking the emotions. We need to tell them, from one moment to the next it changes- one day to the next. Nothing stays the same. In the books, it does not tell you that. The minister or priest do not even tell you that, they try to tell you the opposite, that you should try to "keep everything the same". How is that possible? I am not the same I was, just look at the photos from my past. We change constantly. What we expect from each other, from sex changes. What satisfies us, our partner. And certainly what is in our mind changes, so that it seriously effects what we do.
We now watch a lot of TV and Movies and Cable TV with movies and videos with violence and writhing dancers. It is nothing for us to see at the age of 2 what our parents did not let us see at 16. Sex is no longer a dirty word, but words are all used as if none are four letter words at all. I use all the information I can to help my children get wise before they get wrong information from the other teens at school or from the media.They are bombarded with wrong information and sexual stimulation from a young age. I make a point of telling them what words mean so that they KNOW what they are saying. Do they want to be using dirty language? We don't need to when we have a rich vocabulary and can use other words to express ourselves.
I surely don't want the repressive time to return, where s** was a dirty word, but haven't we gone the other way a bit too far, where a baby hears m***f**** in just about every song and movie? When we see sexual behaviors night and day on TV and when clothes are so sexual as a rule? I would not mind a little more modesty in all areas, what do you think friends?
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