[Music]
you
my story starts about her miles down the
road in Yellowstone National Park on a
trip with some classmates from my high
school earth Club we piled into a
Greyhound bus and we spent the weekend
on the north side of the park in
mid-february we drove around looking for
wildlife we soaked in the boiling River
and we meandered along the boardwalks of
Mammoth Hot Springs being one of the
photographer’s in the group I was doing
my best to document the trip and this
turned into exactly what you would
expect from a group of high school boys
I started taking pictures of my friends
mooning the camera it was you could say
asinine we joked around and called it
get your ass in the nature and it is
since turned into a movement this
movement is tackling three major issues
plaguing society today lack of body
positivity disconnect with nature and
the way we communicate with one another
when I was younger I saw the taller
Tanner and more muscular teenage boys of
TV and movies I saw my own pale stocky
and less developed body as inferior how
many of us constantly compare our bodies
to the pop culture icons of movies
magazines excuse me and now our Facebook
Twitter and Instagram feeds what do most
of us think when we look at our naked
bodies
I already wasn’t confident in the way I
looked
let alone how I looked naked a little
while after the Yellowstone trip I I got
the gumption to pose for my own photo
totally naked I was motivated partially
by rebellion partially by teenage angst
and partially
I the curiosity with what it feels like
to stand totally naked with nothing
separating me and the fresh air
Jesus embarrassing uh confident my own
body oh right I was gonna show the
picture alright so uh so it took
years for me to feel confident in my own
body but it’s as if it took every ounce
of my courage just to stand there naked
with no one around the trees the snow
and the wind didn’t care what I looked
like at that moment they just provided a
space where I could take that leap of
faith
I experienced pure freedom a release
from the constant presence of a screen
the neverending dig for likes and
comments and the expectations that
myself and others had put on me it felt
great like I was truly meant to be there
a little while after my photo shoot I
went home and I thought about how social
media had played such a major role in
perpetuating this lack of confidence I
thought about how I could be whoever I
wanted to on social media but after
taking this photo I only wanted to be
this new me that I discovered naked on
the side of a hill despite my parents
best attempts to stop me I decided to
post this photo on Instagram and
Facebook two things happen here first my
family was a mixture of unhappy and
disapproving I got comments people
unfollowed me my grandma called me
and second I got this overwhelming
feeling that the combination of standing
there naked with no one around and
posting that photo as my grandma
reminded me so the whole world could see
would have me never again thinking I was
pale and stocky I was just me and I was
really loving me by taking this one
photograph I had felt more positive
about my body felt more connected than
ever to nature and had used my social
media in a way that felt authentic and
fresh and then it hit me what if I got
someone else to step a little outside
their comfort zone but they also have a
similar experience to the one I had
after a few bumps from friends I decided
to start the get your ass into nature
Instagram page and the page has since
grown to nearly a hundred thousand
followers and the sherry and the stories
that have been shared go far beyond what
I originally intended
these photos go past just taking a silly
naked picture with your friends I’ve
heard stories of people reflecting on
the loss of a loved one cancer survivors
reclaiming their bodies after years of
chemotherapy men and women feeling a
confidence that they never thought they
could have people coming to terms with
their sexuality and many feeling
connected to nature for the first time
through all this I’ve learned the
importance of having the courage to step
outside our comfort zones find our
vulnerabilities and share them with the
world although I firmly believe there’s
nothing like it I don’t think that going
out to get your acid in nature is a way
for everyone to gain new perspective or
confidence I do have three suggestions
that I’d invite everyone to consider
first find something that scares you
this could be anything from climbing a
ladder to getting back into dating
second do it do whatever it is you’re
afraid of and create something to prove
that you did third and the most
important share it go on your preferred
social network and tell your story every
time someone shares a story of
overcoming their fears it inspires
someone else to try and conquer their
own I’m becoming more exposed to a side
of social media where people aren’t
trying to create an image that endlessly
pleases those around them they take
their best shot at trying to explore who
they truly are I’m not sure what the
future holds for my little experiment
but I do know this is not the end
you
[Applause]
you
my story starts about her miles down the
road in Yellowstone National Park on a
trip with some classmates from my high
school earth Club we piled into a
Greyhound bus and we spent the weekend
on the north side of the park in
mid-february we drove around looking for
wildlife we soaked in the boiling River
and we meandered along the boardwalks of
Mammoth Hot Springs being one of the
photographer’s in the group I was doing
my best to document the trip and this
turned into exactly what you would
expect from a group of high school boys
I started taking pictures of my friends
mooning the camera it was you could say
asinine we joked around and called it
get your ass in the nature and it is
since turned into a movement this
movement is tackling three major issues
plaguing society today lack of body
positivity disconnect with nature and
the way we communicate with one another
when I was younger I saw the taller
Tanner and more muscular teenage boys of
TV and movies I saw my own pale stocky
and less developed body as inferior how
many of us constantly compare our bodies
to the pop culture icons of movies
magazines excuse me and now our Facebook
Twitter and Instagram feeds what do most
of us think when we look at our naked
bodies
I already wasn’t confident in the way I
looked
let alone how I looked naked a little
while after the Yellowstone trip I I got
the gumption to pose for my own photo
totally naked I was motivated partially
by rebellion partially by teenage angst
and partially
I the curiosity with what it feels like
to stand totally naked with nothing
separating me and the fresh air
Jesus embarrassing uh confident my own
body oh right I was gonna show the
picture alright so uh so it took
years for me to feel confident in my own
body but it’s as if it took every ounce
of my courage just to stand there naked
with no one around the trees the snow
and the wind didn’t care what I looked
like at that moment they just provided a
space where I could take that leap of
faith
I experienced pure freedom a release
from the constant presence of a screen
the neverending dig for likes and
comments and the expectations that
myself and others had put on me it felt
great like I was truly meant to be there
a little while after my photo shoot I
went home and I thought about how social
media had played such a major role in
perpetuating this lack of confidence I
thought about how I could be whoever I
wanted to on social media but after
taking this photo I only wanted to be
this new me that I discovered naked on
the side of a hill despite my parents
best attempts to stop me I decided to
post this photo on Instagram and
Facebook two things happen here first my
family was a mixture of unhappy and
disapproving I got comments people
unfollowed me my grandma called me
and second I got this overwhelming
feeling that the combination of standing
there naked with no one around and
posting that photo as my grandma
reminded me so the whole world could see
would have me never again thinking I was
pale and stocky I was just me and I was
really loving me by taking this one
photograph I had felt more positive
about my body felt more connected than
ever to nature and had used my social
media in a way that felt authentic and
fresh and then it hit me what if I got
someone else to step a little outside
their comfort zone but they also have a
similar experience to the one I had
after a few bumps from friends I decided
to start the get your ass into nature
Instagram page and the page has since
grown to nearly a hundred thousand
followers and the sherry and the stories
that have been shared go far beyond what
I originally intended
these photos go past just taking a silly
naked picture with your friends I’ve
heard stories of people reflecting on
the loss of a loved one cancer survivors
reclaiming their bodies after years of
chemotherapy men and women feeling a
confidence that they never thought they
could have people coming to terms with
their sexuality and many feeling
connected to nature for the first time
through all this I’ve learned the
importance of having the courage to step
outside our comfort zones find our
vulnerabilities and share them with the
world although I firmly believe there’s
nothing like it I don’t think that going
out to get your acid in nature is a way
for everyone to gain new perspective or
confidence I do have three suggestions
that I’d invite everyone to consider
first find something that scares you
this could be anything from climbing a
ladder to getting back into dating
second do it do whatever it is you’re
afraid of and create something to prove
that you did third and the most
important share it go on your preferred
social network and tell your story every
time someone shares a story of
overcoming their fears it inspires
someone else to try and conquer their
own I’m becoming more exposed to a side
of social media where people aren’t
trying to create an image that endlessly
pleases those around them they take
their best shot at trying to explore who
they truly are I’m not sure what the
future holds for my little experiment
but I do know this is not the end
you
[Applause]
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