Reposted from December of 2012
(Slightly edited)
I Need You To Need Me is a wonderful blog by a dear lady who is finding her way through the submissive journey. The beginning of one of her recent posts began with this opening line:
I’ve had several asks on my Tumblr, why do I want to be a submissive/slave? Why do I want to be controlled and abused and so forth? It infuriates me that so many see BDSM as something bad and it takes someone weak to give themselves to someone else.
(Here is the link to the post) http://ineedyoutoneedme.wordpress.com/2012/11/18/submissiveslave/
Her post inspired me to write the following.
First – when I’m faced with such questions I remind myself that it’s impossible to explain to a vanilla person the tremendous pleasure and joy we derive from our surrender. If they’re not hard-wired as we are, it doesn’t matter what we say, or how we try to explain, they simply will not be able to comprehend the message.
And second – in a sane, loving D/s relationship, a submissive has a safe word. If something becomes too much, if she is uncomfortable or frightened there is an exit door.
Being a submissive is not a choice. At least it’s not a choice for me, it’s who I am. A vanilla relationship is wholly unsatisfying, frustrating and boring. There is no point, I cannot be truly happy.
I sometimes wonder if we Dominants and submissives have actually been caught in some kind of time warp. In the 40s and 50s, D/s was the natural order of things, it just wasn’t labeled as such. Think of Ricky and Lucy – there’s a D/s relationship if there ever was one.
Simon Templer, the fabulous Saint, talked about it often, and I was watching an old episode of Perry Mason recently, during which a husband spanked his wife. No worries there! She caused a scene at a party and he dealt with it.
On July 20, I posted a blog entitled:
Dominance + submission = Ultimate Romance
And September 28 I posted another entitled:
Dominance/submission: Slavery vs. Submission Just Semantics?
At the end of the day we must be true to ourselves. We must follow our path and seek the joy and happiness that is ours to cherish. We don’t have to justify who we are or answer questions from those who can never understand what it is that compels us to live our lifestyle.
As The Fading Romantic Dominant often states – Life Is Not A Rehearsal.
https://www.amazon.com/author/maggiecarpenter
I disagree. In the 40s and 50s “the natural order of things” was what we would call “abuse” today. Some people having less rights, status, etc. because of their gender has nothing to do with D/S.
I think you are right when you write that a vanilla person will never understand Maggie – I had a look at the blog you mention above, and on the page I read – where the woman has to remain in a certain position for a long painful time – that just seems to me to be cruel. But each to their own or as we say in England -whatever floats your boat!
I agree, Lin, and I was actually having a discussion with someone about this just the other day. I see the cane as abusive, but others not at all. D/s is a broad label, the devil is in the details (if you will), and I do not judge, though we all agree there are those who use the BDSM label as a cover for abuse. When I talk about D/s, I always come from the POV of a loving, romantic relationship, where the man understands his submissive, her limits and her desires, and utterly respects them.
Maggie – I am so like you. Vanilla relationships aren’t bad, they are just not fulfilling. Even when they have emotion and meaning, they have no depth. No way of filling my needs. I’m a submissive and I need active submission to feel whole and complete as a person. I think so much of popular fiction has portrayed D/s relationships so badly that many people – definitely those people who aren’t part of the lifestyle – assume our lives are about abuse and being forced. They simply can not understand how we are wired and how our needs are just simply different from theirs!
That last sentence says it all. They simply cannot understand how we are wired and our needs are just simply different from theirs. Thanks for taking the time to share, GSG. Truly appreciate it.