Chapter 13: A Last Minute Pep Talk - “It’s showtime!”

“OK, I think they’re about ready for us,” said Sylvia to the students gathered in the meeting room, waiting to file into the hearing at the state capitol. “It’s showtime!”

Immediately she regretted having said “showtime.” She intended it as just a flippant comment, but it occurred to her that perhaps it was not the best cliché for young, newly-stripped students, some of whom might have been a bit dubious about being paraded around the state capitol naked in front of a bunch of clothed governmental officials.

“We’ll be walking down the hall until it dead-ends into another hallway, then turn right and continue to the big double doors. That’s the hearing room,” she continued.

Then she paused and looked around the room. Sure enough, she feel a bit of uneasiness here and there.

“I notice some of you are looking a bit apprehensive.”

There were nods of agreement among some of the kids. Sylvia called on a boy who had nodded his head and asked him the reason for his trepidation.

“Well, I guess it’s just ... I dunno ... I’m about to walk into a hearing room at the state capitol in front of a bunch of government guys, uh, you know...”

He faltered.

“Stark nekkid?” Sylvia said.

“Yeah.”

There was a smattering of laughter, and some murmurs of agreement.

“Listen, kids,” Bob spoke up, “there’s no need to be nervous. Just be yourself. There’s nothing any different about today than any other day. Nothing different about the people in that room than people everywhere, in the general public, who see you all the time. Except they’re a little more boring.”

More snickers.

“Yes, you go to school every day dressed just like you are now,” Sylvia pointed out. “You’re naked at home, you’re naked in restaurants, you’re naked at mini-golf, at the skating rink. You think nothing of walking down the street or strolling through the mall wearing nothing but a pair of shoes. Let me ask you,” she said looking at the boy who had spoken up, “I believe I heard you earlier mentioning you had an after-school job?”

“Yes ma’am.”

“Where did you work?”

“At Ingle’s.”

“And what do you wear when you report to your workplace?”

“Well ... nothing,” he said. “Except shoes, they do require you wear shoes on the job.”

“Are you usually hard when you go in?”

“Usually. Most days my morning pill hasn’t worn off.”

“And when you applied for the job, did you have to go in an office for a job interview?”

“I did.”

“Were you a little nervous?”

“A little, yeah.”

“About meeting a potential employer in the nude, and maybe even erect?”

“Among other things, but, well, yes.”

“But you were naked when you went in for your interview?”

“Well, I did wear my sneakers.”

“And you got the job!”

“I did.”

“Exactly! See, there was no need for worry.”

“And there’s no need for any of you to worry,” said Bob. “Everything you all do, every day, you do in the nude. And there’s absolutely no stigma to that, nothing wrong with it.”

“This is the new Florida,” said Sylvia.

“And you’ve got the law behind you,” added Bob. “Just like—excuse me, what’s your name?”

“Josh,” said the boy.

“Yes, just like Josh when he applied for his job. Employers cannot by law discriminate against stripped kids. Or erections, which, in the state of Florida, at least among stripped kids, are legal in public and perfectly acceptable. And it’s just like that for you all today. You all have the full force of Florida state law behind you, 100%.”

“You know, the only reason for this hearing, officially, is to determine whether the rules of the Stripped for Florida program should be amended to include provisions for unseasonably cold weather,” said Sylvia. “And there should be, we don’t take issue with that. This hearing has nothing to do with whether you should be going naked in public. That is your right.”

“Not to mention it’s illegal if you DON’T,” added Bob. “The only reason we are taking this so seriously and have asked you all to come today is that we believe certain lawmakers are going to try to use this as an opportunity to dismantle the entire program, if not statewide, at least in their districts. Which could include almost all the northern third of the state. That’s why we encourage you to walk in that hearing room with confidence. Be glad for these lawmakers, or anybody, to see you naked. It’s how you live. Own that. Be who you are!”

“And you boys,” said Sylvia, “no self-consciousness if you happen to be erect—which I see that some you are. Remember, in the words of the Florida Supreme Court, there is no shame in an erection in the state of Florida.”

“OK, kids, it’s showtime!!” said Bob.

This time, that was the right thing to say.

“Let’s show ‘em some NEKKID!!” added Sylvia, with gusto.

Suddenly the room felt much more encouraged and enthusiastic.

Usually, pep talks didn’t have the intended effect on Rachel, but in this case, it did. “She’s right, I live in the nude,” she thought to herself, feeling a bit less uneasy about parading into a governmental hearing in front of a bunch of officials while wearing nothing but ear rings and a necklace.