“Are you still a virgin?” the boy wearing white uniform asked his girl classmate beside him naughtily smiling. “Of course, yes,” snapped the girl in a lowered voice, ashamed that other MRT passengers might hear her. But I did. I was minding my own business, but I heard their conversation and became interested.
The boy mockingly said, “Wag mo nga akong gaguhin, virgin? Baka yang ilong mo na lang ang di nagagalaw!” (don’t fool me, virgin? Maybe your nose is the only one left untouched!”) They giggled and turned their conversation into a whisper, seeing that I am smiling too.
My mind flooded by our lunchtime sex related talks in our office. Sex topics never fail to amuse us.
Virginity in this day and age is subject to interpretation and the question “are you still a virgin?” is often followed by the answer “what kind?” referring to whether you already experienced oral sex, anal sex, “finger” sex, vaginal sex or sex of all kinds. What “sex” is now? Is it just penetrative sex? The concept of virginity itself has become quite obscured among us, especially to teenagers.
Girlfriend-boyfriend relationship was previously called “steady,” then became either “on” or not. Now it was replaced by “special friends,” “friends with benefits” and FUBU or “fuck buddies.” Sexual norms is rapidly changing and “Maria Clara” image is dead. I believe that education plays a vital role to combat loose morals.
Sex is usually never discussed in Filipino homes and the youth get their information from their peers, the internet and magazines. First-time sex happens in unsupervised homes. Let’s accept it. Pornography is easily accessible nowadays – DVD’s in Quiapo, it the internet, in magazines and in mobile phones. I believe that education is the key but the DepEd’s plan to integrate sex education in the elementary level was shelved because of the strong opposition from the highly political Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines. Some priests nowadays are corrupted by stinking Philippine politics. Catholicism in the Philippines is becoming the prime mover of backward progress.
The world now has become so much more complicated. We are more independent on matters of courtship, marriage and sex.
Are we just having open minds or loose morals?
Image Source: Joan Semmel. Sunlight, 1978.
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