Chapter - 60 -


The naked truth


A title that some of you may like. I am going to tell you the truth. Not the truth you think 
because nobody believes me when I write this. This is why I start by writing about 
nakedness.

There is something that I have been totally against from the day I was born, and that 
is clothes. Not that I am sitting here naked in front of my computer. What I mean is 
the way people dress.

Clothes are no longer just garments to protect against the cold or heat. The primary 
purpose of wearing clothes these days is to follow the latest fashion, showing off that 
you can pay more for your clothes than others, as a sign of how important you are. 
Let me start this chapter by telling you a story about what happened to me when I 
was young.

I will first describe how I looked in those days. I had long hair down to my shoulders, 
a beard, very tight brown pants, high boots up to my knees and a black blazer, over 
which I wore various silver necklaces. I was around 17, and I went to a store to look for 
new pants. When I was in that store, an attendant followed me at a distance of 5 feet all 
the time, watching whether I was going to steal something. I left the store without buying 
anything and went home. At home, I changed my hair so that it looked as if it was short. 
I put on a shirt, tie and decent shoes. I went back to that store. The same man opened 
the door for me. I entered, held the door and asked for the manager. He said that he was 
the manager, so I asked him: "Do you remember that boy with long hair, a half hour ago?" 
He said that he did. I told him: "It was me! With my long hair and different clothes, you 
thought I came here to steal and now that I have respectable clothes on and a tie, you are 
holding your door open for me!" He went red and looked as if he would like to sink 
through the floor.

This is a true story and I can tell you more about what happened in other places. Getting a 
job was impossible when I was dressed the way I wanted and had my hair the way I liked. 
Many companies do not look at your qualifications, talents or possibilities. They look at 
how you are dressed! As if wearing a jacket and tie is a guarantee against being a 
swindler or a murderer! It is not the clothes that make a person, it is what is in you.

In this modern world, everything is about looks and appearances, what we wear, how the 
face lifts have been done, while underneath there is just an empty shell. An old man or 
woman full of wrinkles can be a person with a wonderful heart, living a perfect happy life.

Why do people look at the way a person is dressed to decide if he is important or not? 
What is the use of those ties, which are more suitable for hanging oneself? All these 
highly uncomfortable clothes make it hard to walk naturally. And all this is just to look 
important or perfect to others. People want to look like Hollywood actors and actresses, 
making their lives into performances, while they are empty without a heart or soul. 
All the years I have been here earth, I have worn what I want and what I like and it suits 
me fine.

A few years ago, I attended a reception at our Prime Minister's office, where I was 
supposed to present her a drawing of herself that I had made. I went to her office in the 
middle of the city and announced my arrival at the porter. His mouth dropped and 
others gathered outside too. They asked me: "Do you want to go to our Prime Minister 
dressed like that?"  "Why not?", I asked. "Because you are dressed in shorts and a 
T-shirt from a famous company." I turned around and walked away. They came after 
me and said that I could enter after all. There I was, standing amidst all those people 
dressed in suits, wearing comfortable shorts and a T-shirt!

I have one principle: if you do not want to accept me in the clothes I wear, do not ask 
me to come! I am not dirty, my clothes are clean, so what is the difference between you 
and me?

The same happened when I went to the American Consulate, delivering drawings 
that the consul had ordered. Again dressed in my shorts and T-shirt I went to the porter. 
A lady came to take over the drawings, because I could not appear before 
the American consul the way I looked. I did not give her my drawings and just told her: 
"I have an appointment with the consul."
She came back and let me in. I personally handed over the drawings to the consul, 
we talked for a while and I was invited for a reception. I went to the reception the same 
way I always dress, in shorts and a T-shirt. So I stood among people in suits or tuxedos, 
feeling perfectly comfortable talking with the consul.

Many people believe in all these appearances. But those who invited me to parties, 
receptions and other occasions in the past, now know "John comes the way he likes 
to look"! They respect me, not for the clothes I wear, but for who I really am inside my 
heart and soul.

There may be companies, agencies, parties, receptions telling me to come wearing 
a tuxedo or a suit, but I will still go dressed the way I like. Because people believe in 
the importance of clothes are people who are empty, narrow-minded and ignorant of 
what it means to be a human being. 

This is why I wrote this chapter. What a person really is, becomes clear when you see 
him naked, without expensive clothes, jewels, et cetera. You are yourself, pure, when 
you have your shower, naked. That is when you look the same as someone who is poor, 
apart from your million dollar house, of course! Then you can see who is really rich, 
more advanced in life, because there is no place to hide. An open, warm heart and 
pure soul that are there for everybody. Think about that when you are having your 
shower and look at yourself, it is not the clothes that make a man or a woman, but the 
heart and soul inside you.

The naked truth that shows others who you really are!


(Chapter 60)


TO MY NEXT CHAPTER