So the last poem was about the sexual side of love. Can there be love without sex? You read and be the judge...
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It is not easy I tell you. What is not easy you ask? Abstaining from sex is not easy my friend. When you have no one you love or care for, you convince yourself sex doesn't really matter. It's no big deal, you tell yourself and anyone who raises an eyebrow and goes on to ask. I am strong you persuade yourself on those nights you go out with friends to catch that romantic comedy with those beautiful love scenes.
Hmmmmm. I tell you it is not easy. Abstinence is not what nature planned for a healthy human body. You hit puberty and the hormones start raging in your system. You read mills and boon and thrills and boon and sex is this earth shattering experience. You read Joan Collins and Harold Robbins and the raunchy aspects are described in titillating detail. The blood pools in certain parts of your body and you can't wait to meet your own love and share sex with him.
Why abstinence then? You are a teenager and your body is so ready, more than ready. But you are filled with romantic fantasies of there being just one person with whom it would be special. You also remember all the sunday school lessons you attended and if you're like me, what the catechist made you vow before your confirmation. The years creep by and you become mature enough to realise that you are not emotionally ready no matter how much your body screams for it. You go back to your bible roots and tap some strength from being born again.
Abstinence. Sometimes you ask yourself, what does it really mean? If you make out with your transient boyfriends, does that count? Afterall you did get some pleasure and maybe an orgasm or two from them. You recreate these episodes in your mind those days during your cycle when you are so easily aroused. And if you're like me you put yourself in the dock those nights you wake up horny from the erotic dreams stalking your subconscious. There is afterall that guy that wanted to be your **** buddy.
The years continue to pass and you still abstain. Some of your secondary school friends get married, get pregnant and you wonder at their new found confidence. Your university mates are sexually active and talk about all manner of stuff in your presence. Sometimes you own up to your inexperience and if the company is hostile, you brazen it out with knowledge gleaned from books. You cringe when they mention their numerous abortions, are disgusted when they crawl back to abusive BFs just for the sex and your decision is strengthened.
But does that strengthen your body? Not for me. A case of the spirit being willing and the flesh weak. You help yourself out sometimes and other times you go out with that guy that has been hanging around and allow him cop a feel. Most of the time though you stiffen your upper lip and go to sleep. Your guilty conscience makes you backslide. Furthermore, trying to get busy with church shows up the corrupt underbelly and you lose faith. The choirmaster and the solo singer are having sex so why do you bother? The pastor and his wife wear only Armani and Prada while Brother Puis and his family starve so why do you bother?
You are almost an atheist but you know that's not possible. You hold on to your decision but it's no more for God. Some of your friends you shared the pact with had either fallen by the wayside or gotten married. You're approaching your big 3-0 and your closest friend tells you it's only fear holding her back. It is no more strength of will. It is no more saving it for that one special guy. The other says its just that after rejecting all the previous eligible suitors, why give it up to some of the yeye people coming around now. What to do? Your crown has become a millstone around your neck.
Then that friend gives in to one of those not so eligible guys, and he marries her after a bit. She's lucky isn't she? He's a bachelor anyways unlike the majority married men that trail after you like flies to raw meat. There is one left and so you console yourself. Then out of the blues, she calls you. I have done it. Done what you ask? Had sex and girl it is so overrated, she blurts. You have heard that before but hearing it from her makes your heart plummet. Is that it? All that you've been looking forward to?
But that's not the end. Did I say it was not easy? If anyone tells you abstinence is easy, they're fibbing big time. You are now dating a guy you love more than all the others. He loves you so much and also understands your stance, he is ready to wait. But your friend is on your neck. Ahhh it gets better. The more you have sex, the better it becomes. She is having the time of her life and she wants you to join the league. Bobo is making subtle moves and your body is feeling him. A lot. What to do?
It is not easy I tell you.
Or is it?
OMG! u just said all dats in my head..and heart..abstinence truly is difficult most especially wen u have friends going on and on and on about it. sometimes the battle is SOOO difficult and u wonder what u have to lose by it abd trust me when i call it a battle cos it is a "CONSTANT BATTLE!"....hmmmm God help us all....
ReplyDeleteOMG! u just said all dats in my head..and heart..abstinence truly is difficult most especially wen u have friends going on and on and on about it. sometimes the battle is SOOO difficult and u wonder what u have to lose by it and trust me when i call it a battle cos it is a "CONSTANT BATTLE!"....hmmmm God help us all....
ReplyDeleteI love this particular post because it deals with what most people are actually going through... Abstinence is not beans!!! It is difficult and most time a very tiring process... God help us all!
ReplyDeleteA standing ovation is in order! LOVE it! Well done!
ReplyDeleteAlright me i talk for miself....was a virgin found it hard tried not to read all that mills and sex thingy cos it made me think of sex more often than i needed to. didnt let my ears listen to wat my friends had to say about sex cos i knew it wud make my heart ponder...i was also seen as that born again sis so i guess that helped cos they knew they shudnt approach me with such tales.
ReplyDeleteon the other hand wen i found the right one it was mega difficult and after a year of doin everythin else but sex..lol we cudnt hold on any longer and we did the act. was definitely overrated felt proud that it was him i finally gave my body to but then i felt from my experience of it...it really was so momentary that it cuda waited till marriage ..the orgasm or wateva u want to call it only lasts 5 mins and truth be told the more u do it the better u get at it..and after gettin married to him makin love(notice the differnce not sex) to him was definitely heightenin! compared to wen we werent married.
and then lastly the third stage as a virgin for me was finally realising i needed to get to a peak. there was pleasure from sex but then i took a step back and thot if he comes then surely a woman comes as well..i followed suite to find that place found it and it has been worth the wait the adventure the innocence of not knowing wat it felt like etc..my thing is if i had felt all of these before marriage i must be bored by now..so as i speak now its still a learnin journey gettin to understand wat he likes and i like wat gets us there...therefore the beauty is in the mystery of sex..not knowing it all before u find that special one!
thats my opinion ooo and its worked for me chao
Abstinance is hard.
ReplyDelete@barefeet - I love the way you define sex after marrige, "heightening"!
Me and my boyfriend, we trying to abstain. We have had sex so many times and well we both christians and we felt convicted to stop. Most of the time when we do stop, it lasts a week to a month only then we somehow fall again. I always wanted to save myself till marrige but after I was raped, I didnt care so I went on sleeping with every guy, or man even, that wanted to sleep with me.
The one time I did a very cruel thing. I ws dating a virgin guy and he was saving himself for "us" (hoping we would get married) and then I pushed him to the limit and made him have sex with me. Soon after breaking his virginity I broke up with him. I know it was mean of me but I had issues then. Til this day I pray he forgives me for it.
I once thought I was a sex addict. Maybe I still do. My mum is, she used to come with a man in her room which I shared with her on nights I didnt want to be alone and they would have sex in there while Im there. Talk about having a messed up mind.
Sorry my comment is long. This whole thing got me thinking, I wanna abstain and so far it has been almost two weeks without doing it. Every day is never easy...
Hmn Myne u really mean beeznez this february o. My decision to fly the V flag stems from my faith of staying "chaste" till marriage and later grew into smth i wanted to do for myself. I'm a very deep person and i believe in the significance of things, i had a bf and we really did come close to having sex but we didnt and i'm grateful cos maybe if we had i wouldnt have been able to move on from what was a "draining" relationship. i would have felt bonded to him, trapped and would have ended up resenting him.
ReplyDeleteI know its hard abstaining, but its harder when you give so much of urself to so many people (we never intend to) at the end of the day what are u left with???
Myne Whitman.. you are serious.. It is a month of love indeed. Bring it on woman " sweet things you do me" That is my all time favourite.
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ReplyDeleteWow...as soon as I saw the title I thought it'd be preaching on sex over abstinence like some other people I come across every single bloody day......!! Funny enough, this "some other people" is what you're talking about. It's really frustrating.
ReplyDeleteSEX is meant to be a special and untainted expression of mutual true love between two people so I believe it's most definitely worth the wait.
yes myne means bizness this month!
ReplyDeleteu wrote out all those things on my mind. abstinence is really hard especially when u have a partner u really love, it gets harder by the day.
sometimes i feel good that i havent cashed my V-cheque, other times i feel like "i'm a fraud, i make out, i just dont finger and penetrate so kini big deal".
i'm hanging on to it cos i know i wont enjoy it, somehow i know its overrated plus i will feel so guilty during and after so whats the point?
its hard cos i'll be 20-frigging-8 by april!!! and according to my pastor at this age we should be "doing terrible things in righteousness"!
its hard but i try.
nice work myne
Myne.. (sigh). Its like you read my mind before writing this post. Abstinence is indeed very hard. I am a virgin in my early twenties and some of the things i hear scare me but i still feel its worth saving for the man who will be my future husband.
ReplyDeleteA friend even told me scary things about how my first time will be more painful as i grow older and so on but, what the hell... I have waited this long so i guess i will continue.. Though i must confess that sometimes you just get so into the mood when you are with your booboo and its truly divine intervention that saves one from doing the irreversible deed. lol!!
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ReplyDeleteHmm.. this is really deep.
ReplyDeletewow
ReplyDeletethis is so deep
i swear it is not easy at all.
i'm a teenager and i know how my body feels.
gosh it is NOT easy!
i love this post. i think its my fave here on this blog :)
Wow,i like this post. Abstinence is indeed very hard,ko easy i tell you!
ReplyDeleteThank you all so much. As you can guess, this is semi autobiographical and comes from the heart. I waited till my marriage and like some others have said, it was worth it. Still is...
ReplyDeletei've had sex and then i've stopped a decision that was rather easy for me and for the past year its been real easy for me, but only because i realized that while it was my decision to have sex, i never felt comfortable with it(felt like God was going to punish me) and so once we broke up i just decided no matter how i feel, i would close my legs and thats been it...but thats just me...me thinks thats why its hard to date anyone now, because everyone wants sex
ReplyDeleteAbstinence is a joke...unless you are a nun. People getting married so they can have sex is also a joke. Ever wonder why kids raised in Catholic Schools become the biggest man-hos and she-hos?
ReplyDeleteMyne dis is beautifully done. ABSTINENCE CAN ONLY B ACHIEVD BY WILPOWA AND DIVINE INTERVENTION. I LOVE THIS POST.
ReplyDeleteBe like Nike and 'Just Do It.'
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ReplyDeleteMyne dis is beautifully done. ABSTINENCE CAN ONLY B ACHIEVD BY WILPOWA AND DIVINE INTERVENTION. I LOVE THIS POST.
ReplyDeleteMyne dis is beautifully done. ABSTINENCE CAN ONLY B ACHIEVD BY WILPOWA AND DIVINE INTERVENTION. I LOVE THIS POST.
ReplyDeleteMyne dis is beautifully done. ABSTINENCE CAN ONLY B ACHIEVD BY WILPOWA AND DIVINE INTERVENTION. I LOVE THIS POST.
ReplyDeleteMyne dis is beautifully done. ABSTINENCE CAN ONLY B ACHIEVD BY WILPOWA AND DIVINE INTERVENTION. I LOVE THIS POST.
ReplyDeleteMyne dis is beautifully done. ABSTINENCE CAN ONLY B ACHIEVD BY WILPOWA AND DIVINE INTERVENTION. I LOVE THIS POST.
ReplyDeleteI'll be back to read
ReplyDeleteMy people, abstinence is not easy at all...It is hard when you are looking at the person, knowing you can do it with the person, but won't do it for the sake of God. Somehow, God gives us the grace to bear it.
ReplyDeleteI noted the part where you wrote "...hold on to your decision but it's no more for God..." While I truly believe that God really helps people who are determined to abstain, I know people who were not necessarily religious but kept themselves.
like everyone is saying...it's like you're saying what's on everyone's mind! but in a very beautiful way.
ReplyDeletelove it..
ReplyDeleteyeah after awhile its not even about your christianity anymore..when your sunday school teacher gets pregnant before getting married, when the choir leader gives birth to a healthy baby 6 months after getting married..lol.. I dun even know what it is for me anymore, its definitely not because i'm saving myself for some husband who has probably had sex with the whole of Ghana .. but yeah, its actually very hard indeed. .. but i also think there are so many other things to explore without actually having penetrative sex, these obviously make the final act even more thrilling..but d real question is, can u really say you are 'abstaining' when u do these? jux sumn i was talkin abt with a friend.
This is awesome...wow i have realized that people have common stories because your write up is so me and my girlfriends stories....from the pacts to marriages same story girl...Love it...neways thanks for stopping by my blog.
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ReplyDeleteReally don't know what else to say after 33 comments... I definitely identify with this post because a part of me wants to "save it" but the hypocrisy of "keeping it for your wedding night" when the man most likely did not return the favour left me disillusioned. The religious reasons don;t work for me either cos it's like supermarket Christianity: picking some things to conveniently blame on religion and then avoiding total compliance with biblical laws... Thought provoking...
ReplyDeleteNice Post!!!
ReplyDeleteI completely agree with everyone about how hard it is to abstain. But what I know is that God won't put u in a position you can't handle. What I do is to avoid being alone with a guy i'm talking to. Being alone i mean that I'd rather not be caught all cuddled up at 11pm watching some love movie or some music that would send some sensation to my body! lol!
it does help to avoid being caught in a corner and not knowing how to handle it. If you know ur weak point, try to avoid it. thats my philosophy in life...
I always pray for God to save me from this and hasting the foot-steps of my husband, so that I can have sex and not be guilty. But before that happens, I will be sure to fight every temptation that comes my way, because God has to test our level of faith all the time, in order for him to know we are ready to suffer for him!
thats the way I personally see it!
Thanks to all for sharing your thoughts. I'm no preacher and this is as I did me.
ReplyDelete@Lucid, I did it and it was beautiful cos it was at the right time for me. This is not about catholic schools or religion. Of course, how it works for one may not work for the other and that is what I have seen.
Abstience def is NOT easy!!!! I was just thinking about this earlier today....perfect timing Myne! especially with v day around the corner...
ReplyDeleteEventhough it's not easy...it's truly a personal decision...I'll keep waiting jare!...I know it'll def be worth it ;-)
ko easy o.... especially after you have known the exhilaration... :)
ReplyDeleteabstience is not easy.
ReplyDeleteSex is beautiful...but can be worthless with the wrong partner at the wrong time.
ReplyDelete*Waving the V flag with much vim* Yep as a teenager it is difficult controlling "hormones" and though abstaining isn't easy..I'd rather keep mine till marriage.
ReplyDeleteI like this Myne!
I believe in abstinence too, but not till marriaage but till i find the one thats worth having sex with. Then and only then will i consider it, if hes not the one then i will not have any regrets, and if he is, then alls well!
ReplyDeleteGreat post myne, sorry i've bn mia!
Abstinence, like everything else that requires waiting, builds character...
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing Myne, good things really do come to those who wait.
lol. I must say that Barefeet babe broke it down in a level I have never heard before (Note to self: I need to follow her ASAP). Well, What can I say sef, I think We should all do what makes us happy sha. Yeah.
ReplyDeletei loved this post.ive got to say the reason why i decided to stick with abstinence is mainly cos it prevents a lot of things and wahala.and id rather keep it till marriage,i just dont want to give it away like that.plus ive heard that sex is uper overrated.
ReplyDeleteyeah nice post,abstinence is not easy like that,but its also easy for those that can practise moral restraint ,simple
ReplyDeleteMyne u have poured my heart out...
ReplyDeleteluvly piece...
pls write another
Abstinence is not what nature planned for a healthy human body.
ReplyDeleteI liked that. This was very well written, Myne. Kudos.
For all those saying its overrated, just because it was overrated for some doesn't mean it's the same for everyone.Like Myne said, everyone's life is different.
@Lucid Lillith you be kolo girl lol
Very interesting post and insightful comments all in all. They have pretty much said it all, it is definitely not an easy matter to stay abstinent in this day and age but it is definitely very possible. Good stuff, Myne.
ReplyDeletethis is really very thought provoking. a lot of americans for example might not identify with this but truth is that so many things growing up influence our decisions and the way we feel about our actions.
ReplyDeletea lot of people i know who have sex and put on a bold face deal with feelings of guilt when no-one is around. it never feels quite as right as when married.
for me at 29, its still about God, i don't think i should be having sex with someone who is not my husband. at the same time, its also about building character like someone said ..... its also about the special beauty of exploration and satiation in marriage.
of course truth is most of us will be marrying men that dont share the same mentality, most men usually have had sex by the time they marry so in that case does one partner bring a novelty to the meet?
abstinence ... where is the line drawn? heavy petting? what about masturbation? If i do everything but penetrative sex with 6 bfs over the course of a year, am i not worse than my friend who has monogamous sex with her bf of 2 years?
and back to religious matters, to each man his own .... the choir master and the solo singer may be doing it but its THEIR actions .... they don't speak for God.
A way of abstaining is actually knowing fully well the reason why u are abstaining. there are enough non-religious women who wont have sex b4 marriage simply bcos of self-pride and nothing will shake them from that decision.
Adenike, you said it all. I am all for abstinence ... especially for young adults...at least until you are 18 and better yet until you are 20 or 21. After that, you should be looking for a partner, either marriage mate or any other type of mate if marriage is not for you at that time. I lost my virginity at 23 years old. I wanted to wait until I was married but I was like screw this...I am a young social healthy female and I want to have sex. There was no mate in my immediate future and I feel that I made the right choice. I don't regret it.
ReplyDeleteI find a lot of 'abstinent' males and females are hypocrites. Only a few genuinely do it totally...no sex, fondling, groping, and other things. Some even say only penetration counts. What a joke.
For the truly religious, it can be a beautiful way of staying true to your faith, for the hypocrites, save yourself the trouble and enjoy yourself and don't feel guilty for doing what your body was made for. Shikena.
For me, i don't have sex
ReplyDeletebecause i love God.
Its not like i haven't had urges but i guess i just make up my mind to carry out the right actions.
that some folks are kissing, smooching and doing stuff and say anything but penetration is what matters is not what should decide for you.
You need to set your own standard and stick to it.
My will power would have failed me at 21 when i met the first guy that actually made my heart skip a beat.
recently i have met some that i would do anything for so making a decision for Jesus keeps you strong.
also, you need to set guards like i won't go to any man's house, won't stay in places that encourage smooching etc.
in short, set your own standards and don't look at any man or woman as the reason you do what you do. do it for jesus...
peace.
This was really nice..
ReplyDeleteNow, that’s some good ‘food for thought’. True, abstinence is been preached on a per-second basis but truth is, it ain’t easy. My conclusion is, it takes the grace of God and nothing else to abstain from sex . . . especially when you’ve tasted it before. And in a situation where you haven’t, the constantly raging hormones become your worst nightmare but still, it’s rather easy to stay put and wish you won’t have close friends practically taunting you with all the fantastic stories that come with the experience. Conclusion: Follow your heart in this matter!
ReplyDeleteLike i said b4, know the reason why u are abstaining from sex. When people say its only penetrative sex that counts, i find it funny cos i feel like its cutting corners and it encourages you to push yourself to a limit where u give in. What is the purpose behind everything but penetrative sex .. to eat ur cake and have it? Just so your husband can think u are chaste .. that smacks of hypocrisy.
ReplyDeleteFor some people, the reason they abstain is cos they think there is a spiritual connection with the exchange of fluids. In that case, they do everything but the real deal bcos they've been told that if they have sex b4 marriage, then they will have to do deliverance to break covenant. So when u look at it, their mindset gangan is not to abstain but rather they are forced to abstain.
In the end, I guess abstinence means diff things to diff people. Abstinence for the sake of holiness is not likely to seek holes. You know that u r fooling urself when you say after all he only fingered.
In all cases, its hard cos we are not saints but understanding precedes action. Personally as a christian, my understanding is that sex and all its connotations, preceding actions etc was wonderfully created by God to be enjoyed in marriage.
2ndly my yorubaness as well as my christianity say there is something to be said for the spiritual connection thing. 3rdly, self-pride. if I have sex with a bf and we break up, I would almost die cos I would feel like I lost out more in the rxn. And im also an intently personal person that i cant even bear the thought of meeting that person down the line that im not married to who goes like hmmmm i know what lies underneath those clothes of yours.
Adenike, thank you so much for your comments. You've raised a lot of valid points. One thing is that it differs from person to person. What matters is that one is happy with their choice. Enjoy the rest of your week dear.
ReplyDeleteMatters of sex and faith are not easy. I really liked your write up. I wish someone would do a post about abstinence and men. Do men feel the need to abstain or is it just a female thing? Oya Geebee and co answer me :)
ReplyDeleteMPB, it would be nice to get an answer to that.
ReplyDeleteI just think its the grace of God cos left to me it would have been a done deal, there are certain pple that I admit to myself and would to anyone around me, that if the situation presented itself then it would be a done deal, thanks to God the situation has never presented itsef.
ReplyDeleteI think that even people who are virgins have a hard time not just those who have already had sex. I agree with adenike especially about the part where she said you meet an ex bf and he knows whats underneath ur clothes!! ive thought about that too!! I've been waiting for 19 yrs...and it really is a shame that all the women waiting may not get a man who waited also i think thats kinda what sucks about waiting...but the struggle begins with someone who prefers to wait and someone who says they are ok with that but really have ulterior motives ( in my case)...this post was wonderful!
ReplyDeleteThanks for this wonderful post Myne! There are lots of things to say on this topic but i can't put them all together now. Perhaps i'll come back to this another time.
ReplyDeleteYou asked whether there can be love without sex (i take it we're referring to romantic love specifically) and i think there has to be. I think sex can be part of love but it cannot be the whole essence of love.
Awesome article. But i dont understand why you girls describe sex like you detach a part of your body, give it to the man to amuse himself and then return it to you when he is done!
ReplyDeleteMy G Tupac puts it succinctly, its a fair exchange. if the man sees your naked body you also see his, right? so why feel like you are at a disadvantage or you are doing the man a favour. The experience should be the ultimate concern?
So to conclude, yes abstinence is hard but it is worth a try. but if you let yourself into the sexual act, concentrate on the experience bcos it could lenghten your relationship. Trust me, every girl they say has the same thing but they certainly DONT feel the same!
This is wonderfully written, MyneW; i give it a standing ovation!!
ReplyDeleteThis is super deep and I agree with Adenike 100%. I tell people I am not innocent (i am also a hypocrite) even if I am a virgin because between me and God, MEHNNNNN!!! lets not even go there. And sometimes you forget why you abstain but still you just hold on and then its the compromise for who you are with since you are willing to wait for me let me reward you, and I have many times wanted to get it over with, I mean what is the big deal!!! But then you remember why, for me it definitely isn't about my husband(haven't met many male virgins) i am just scared that once i start it would be a slippery slope and its about pleasing God its what he wants so now I can't even think those thoughts because it doesn't please him and of course my dating life is a slump (what a shame) because EVERYBODY is about sex and I hate to deprive people that are not used to my lifestyle and so I pray that God will take care of me because I am his child.
ReplyDelete