Chapter 16

Several weeks passed; the new year had arrived. Earlier in December, the Program Committee had taken Kevin’s suggestion and sent a video message to school officials. In it, the narrator reviewed each term found in the Program booklet which could be misinterpreted or had become controversial and explained the terms’ precise meanings. They had paid attention to Jeremy’s blog articles, too, and properly and unambiguously defined the terms in question.

Also, Denise had met with a few ed school faculty and found two who were enthusiastic and whom she thought would be good as eventual project leaders. They interviewed a number of students, third year and master’s candidates, and settled on eight, four male and four female, who appeared to be the best qualified. One of the things that the project study had found was that most classes worked best when led by a male and female team.

Over Christmas, the Porters invited Kevin, Denise, and Amelia to celebrate the day with them and any embassy staff who had no place to go for the holidays. Amelia got Jeremy a sports watch and Jeremy gave Amelia a charm bracelet with little charms which depicted some of the things she loved—a tiny laughing-weeping mask for theater, a football-soccer player, a floral bouquet, a little book for her love for reading, a heart engraved with “I love you,” a bicycle, and a few other charms. She was thrilled and delighted with the gift and the thoughtfulness behind Jeremy’s selection of each charm.

So it was now a week before school resumed and Denise and Kevin had set up a training session for the eight education students to familiarize them with the project. They used one of the multipurpose classrooms at Norwich Academy and covered the floor with mats. When the group assembled for the first day, Denise greeted them and introduced Amelia and Jeremy.

“Okay, guys, you’ve met Kevin and we told you how we were involved in developing the Avery-Denison Program. Amelia and Jeremy have been our guinea pigs for the British version and have done all of the one-on-one exercises you’re gonna learn here. Our program has three main parts: familiarization and bonding; building trust and teamwork; and developing empathy and connections to others. Each of these components has a general script and timeline but there’s plenty of latitude to allow concentrating on things that work well or if a there’s a hitch, to try some alternatives.

“The first part that we’ll start on now is the bonding. Any of you know each other?”

Of the eight, only three knew each other somewhat, but while most had seen each other on campus, they were all effectively strangers.

Denise continued. “Now comes what may be a difficult part. The children in the project classes wear their PE kits but for you, as their teachers, it’s essential that you have the most intense experience so you’ll be able to project your enthusiasm to the children. We told you to bring your swim suits and implied that we’d be using the pool. Actually, swim suits will be the official class costumes here. There are two rooms over there, see? One has a paper sheet with ‘M’ on it and the other has ‘W.’ Go to those rooms and get changed.”

They began moving to the rooms but one of the girls came to Denise and another hung back as if she wanted to talk too.

“Denise, I’m pretty shy about being in my swim costume—is that really needed?” she asked quietly.

The other girl came up. “Me too. I don’t feel comfortable.”

“Actually, it’s really very important. We told you that this project is being evaluated to replace the Naked in School program, right? We found that the Avery program works well in meeting all of the principles of the naked program and showing a little skin is lots easier than total nudity. Could you have done the Program with the nudity?”

“No!” one girl shuddered and the other blanched. “I remember that they tried to start it at uni. God, was I relieved when that didn’t happen.”

Denise grinned. “But we’ve anticipated you, in case some of you were modest. Go change and you’ll find some coverups in the girls’ dressing room you can wear. Okay?”

“Oh yes,” they chorused.

Soon the group was reassembled and Denise and Kevin led them through one round of the bonding exercise, using Jeremy and Amelia as their models. It turned out that one of the modest girls was touch-shy, too. Kevin led her over to a corner of the room, behind a screen, and began working with her while Amelia took her place with her partner.

Denise then had the group change partners and midway through the second round, Kevin emerged from behind the screen with his partner, who was red-faced but radiant.

“Um, can I take Amelia’s place now?” she asked shyly.

“Sweetie, why don’t you finish this round with Kevin right here, okay? Then the next round you can.”

The group ran through a third round and Denise called a halt for discussion.

“Well, judging by all the sighs and giggles and whispering, I’m guessing that some ice was broken,” Denise said as she looked around, smiling.

Several couples were sitting together, holding hands.

“What emotions did you feel hit you the strongest? And which of the exercises was the most emotionally intense?” she asked.

A spirited discussion began, with the universal opinion that it wasn’t a single exercise; it was the psychological buildup that caused their intense emotional experience. Janet, the girl who had been with Kevin, was glowing about her breakthrough.

“Kevin was ... my god, just amazing. Girls, you gotta do a round with him. He was like a security blanket; I felt just enveloped by his aura and I forgot that I was shy. Kevin, can you teach us to do that?”

Kevin grinned. “You all can learn it. Jeremy has the same talent; we developed it in studying the Eastern martial Arts. You’ll find that about 5 to 7 percent of the kids you’ll be teaching have some degree of touch-shyness. The milder forms are common and are easy to work with, while more serious forms can be a manifestation of what’s called ‘social anxiety disorder’—remember that from your psych classes?”

They did.

“There are more severe forms too, but those tend to be somewhat rare and you can spot kids like that fairly readily since those kids exhibit other behavioral issues. Denise and I worked up a coping protocol to be used with touch-shy kids in the Avery Program. Janet, not to embarrass you or put you on the spot—you told me you could tell this to the group—what did you feel happen with me?”

“Well, I don’t really have a serious aversion to being touched, but I do feel kinda anxious when someone gets too close, gets in my personal space. A lot of people are like that, I think. Kevin was ... it was amazing how he knew what to do. We sat at arm’s lengths and he leaned in and took my hand. It felt okay. Then he told me to close my eyes and feel his hand all over and then he gave me his other hand. He told me to memorize how they felt—you know, the stuff we just learned. Then he asked me if I knew how blind people read other people’s expressions, face reading with the hands.

“I knew about that and said so. He told me to keep my eyes closed and tell him what emotion was on his face, and leaned forward so I could reach him. We went through a bunch of expressions and then he asked me to open my eyes. I didn’t realize that I had moved way closer to him and now we were sitting so, so close! He slowly reached out and stroked my face and asked how it felt. It was okay. Then he asked if I felt okay moving even closer to him and I found I could.

“Kevin told me that my moving toward him was my allowing him into my space; I gave him permission to be there because I had initiated the movement. I never knew! Then he led me through the exercises, letting me be in control about how close I came to him. He was incredibly gentle and soothing and when I closed my eyes, I just felt comforted and secure. And that showed me that I could cope with my feelings when I’m threatened by someone getting too close to me. Oh, Kevin, thank you!”

“Geez, Janet, I’m glad I helped. I’ll get my bill in the mail to you tonight.”

Everyone cracked up laughing.

“Guys, we didn’t expect to do the advanced stuff, like the psych-connected items, so quickly in our intro,” Kevin went on. “This is a terribly sensitive area and you have to tread very carefully, like avoiding giving the child the impression that they’re somehow to blame for their feelings. Another major danger to avoid is having the child becoming fixated on you emotionally, but you also need to keep your trusting connection with them and never seem aloof. When we get to describing what the peer mentors do in the program, you’ll see how this potential problem becomes very significant. Any questions before we continue?”

“Yeah,” one of the guys said. “Do you always do girl on boy and vice versa with that?”

“Oh yes we do, Mitchell,” Denise answered. “And I know your followup question. What if the child has a gay or lez orientation.”

“Right.”

“It’s complicated and I won’t venture deep theories; it just works,” she replied. “I’ll tell you my hunch. It’s likely because these exercises explore sensuality and not sexuality. Does that make sense?”

Nods.

“In my sophomore year in college I knew a girl, a committed lesbian, whose very best friend was a guy,” Denise went on. “They were very close; they hugged and kissed each other. But they were both committed to their significant others, she to her lover and he to his fiancée. It confused me until they told me that they made each other feel good and were delighted that their partners liked each other too. Also, we all know women or girls who have close, even fairly intimate relationships with a female friend. But there’s nothing sexual about their relationship; they just mesh. It happens between opposite sex friends too, like that girl I knew—not a romantic attachment, but one based on a different kind of mutual attachment. So there’s more to close relationships than sexuality. If a boy treats a girl in a respectful, considerate manner, being gentle and nonthreatening, she’ll respond to him regardless of her sexual preferences. Is that answer meaningful?”

“Oh yes ... wow, that’s ace...” he mused.

“One thing we’ll need to figure out, though,” Denise continued, “is how we’ll include really observant Muslim girls—maybe even boys too—in this class. If their faith won’t permit them to have extensive touching contact with the opposite sex, we’ll need to adapt for them. This never came up in the States so we’re on our own here.

“Before we continue then, does anyone else have thoughts to share about their experience so far?” Denise asked.

No one spoke.

Denise grinned. “I think there are some budding friendships forming. Might I be correct?”

Some chuckles.

“Well, let’s shake it up a bit. Here are your next partners.” She read off four pairs of names to a chorus of groans. “After doing this for three rounds, you all probably know the exercises, so I’ll just prompt you for each step. But we’ll be adding two new exercises this time so watch for them.”

The added two exercises first had the boys sitting behind the girls and gently kneading their necks, shoulders, and upper backs, and next by sitting in front of the girls with the girls embracing them as they stroked the boys’ hands and arms. They completed two more rounds and paused for another break; then Denise told them to just chat among themselves for five to ten minutes. Then she left the room with Kevin to set up their lunch.

Now instead of couples sitting together holding hands, all eight were sitting or lying together in a single large group with everyone mostly leaning against each other, reveling in their close contact.

After a few minutes, Denise returned. “Any new comments?” she asked. “I see you’re all pretty comfy with each other now.”

Chuckles.

“Before we continue, remember that this program was conceived as an alternative to the Naked in School program. That program had a few basic principles which I’ll summarize. First, you’re supposed to become more comfortable with your body and your sexuality. Second, you’re to treat others in natural balance as both individual people and sexual beings. Third, you’re to learn to harness your natural energies. Fourth, you’re to learn to behave in a more mature and morally conscious manner. I wrote those principles on the board up there.

“‘Sexuality, ‘ as used here, could be interpreted in both of its senses, that is, eroticism or simply gender identity. Humans, by their very nature, are sexual beings; being animals, we have sex imprinted genetically in every cell of the body, so presumably erotic sex shouldn’t be a required component of the Program. But that’s how it turned out when it was put into practice.

“Now about your reaction to these rounds of the bonding exercises. Do you feel the connection to your partners? How strong it is? How do you characterize it, sexual, romantic, or other kinds of feelings? Use the principles on the board to think about your answers.”

One girl raised her hand. “Denise, the feelings I got each time were very strong but also very confusing. I can’t pigeon-hole them. They made me feel close to my partners, not romantically—sorry, guys,” she giggled, “I think I know; I don’t have a brother, but maybe it was like I’d feel with a sibling—that kind of bonding.”

“That’s fairly perceptive, Judy,” Kevin said. “You recognized that feeling early in our program, but it’s exactly the same kind of bonding that happens between soldiers and Marines who train together and learn to trust and rely on each other. They become ‘brothers in arms, ‘ as the phrase goes. So you felt a hint of sibling bonding. Very good. Anyone else?”

A guy looked hesitant. “Hey Gary,” Denise said. “Don’t be shy, even if you didn’t feel anything much.”

“Shit, Denise, just the opposite! I got hit every time, and hit hard. Erm, yeah, that was a double entendre, sorry...”

Everyone laughed.

“Yeah, hard. I got so turned on, but it was more of a protective feeling than anything else. The feelings I had were like, she’s someone who needs to be watched over, to be protected, kept from harm. Sort of like a parent for a child, I guess.”

“Yeah,” another guy said. “That’s kinda how I felt, too.”

“You know?” a girl spoke. “I had a feeling like Ron’s, but it was more maternal. Not protecting, but nurturing.”

“Very good, Stephanie,” Denise nodded, “but did anyone have romantic feelings or overt sexual ones? Don’t be shy, no one will think less of you for that—this exercise is meant to be fairly intense.”

No one thought their feelings were especially romantic, although there was certainly arousal for both boys and girls but it was a subdued kind of arousal. But they all agreed that the experience was life-altering and thought that the group would remain close friends, especially if the group continued to work together as they had.

“Okay, one last thing before lunch,” Denise grinned. “I noticed a wardrobe change about a half hour after we started the session this morning. Anyone know what I’m referring to?”

Everyone had blank looks and looked around at each other.

Denise walked over to a mat and picked up a coverup, then a second one.

“OH!” exclaimed the two girls who had claimed modesty at the class’s start.

“You don’t have to explain, but you might find it helps if you two want to share your thoughts,” Denise prompted.

Janet was blushing. “You know? I totally forgot I’m only wearing my swimming costume now. Yeah, I felt so comfortable after a while that I took the coverup off. Judy, I noticed that yours was off before my session with Kevin was done.”

“And the funny thing is, I have no recollection of taking mine off,” Judy mused. “Wow, if all this happened to us in one morning, what happens to the kids if they get it for a whole term? Are they brainwashed?”

Denise grinned. “Maybe. There aren’t any published studies yet but our American contacts tell us that among the groups who’ve been in this program, the entire group has completely cohered. No serious rivalries, bullying, fighting. Sounds almost too good to be true, so we’ll see in the longer term. Look at your friends here. How long does it feel you’ve known them?”

The group looked around at each other and then looks of shock appeared on many faces.

“Shit...” one of the guys muttered. “Unbelievable...”

Kevin grinned. “So tell us.”

“Damn. I was gonna say I’ve known them since I started uni, and then realized ... Hell, this is dangerous shit...”

Kevin looked at the group intently. “And you’re exactly right. Very dangerous. As was the Naked in School Program. We’ve fucked with your emotional core, your essential being. We’ve burrowed under your psychological defenses and exposed your naked sensitivities. Back in the ancient days, late 1970s and 80s, after the sexual revolution but before the AIDS epidemic began, there were these so-called ‘encounter groups’ in the States—I don’t know if they had them in Britain then. Psychologists are still examining, discussing, and arguing about the results of those encounter groups; the reports of what they accomplished are so confusing, but it’s generally agreed that participants underwent some mind-altering changes. These groups did exercises like we showed you. Not the same ones, but still they were ones which evoked the same emotions as the exercises we showed you. We developed these particular exercises we showed you today using ideas taken from the Eastern tantra philosophy.

“So we want you to experience the power that these techniques can have on someone. You have to watch the kids to be sure the intensity doesn’t become overwhelming. Later on, we have some videos to show you and you’ll see how kids react to doing these things together. It’s powerful stuff. One of the major criticisms our little anti-Program group back in the States had about it was that when kids’ nascent hormonal eroticism was unleashed, allowing them to indulge in wanton promiscuity, much of their moral inhibitions was lost. This caused much misery, as attested by all the cases of abuse and humiliation that’ve been documented. Well, enough philosophizing. We’ve had lunches delivered and we’ve set the meal out next door. Let’s go eat.”

During lunch, Denise took Jeremy and Amelia aside. “Guys, you still comfortable working with the others in the group? You actually looked like you were enjoying that.”