I first discovered the power of my pussy on the yellow bath rug in my parents’ bathroom. Behind locked doors, I self-explored between ballet lessons, The Brady Bunch, and bedtime. I was 6 years old.
Decades later, a daily ménage à moi is a must-do. It’s a routine habit, like brushing my teeth or meditating. When St. Vincent sings, “Oh, what an ordinary day / Take out the garbage, masturbate,” she speaks to me—and I swoon.
May is Masturbation Month (yes, it’s a thing) and it was created to honor US Surgeon General Joycelyn Elders. After a speech at the United Nations World AIDS Day in 1994, an audience member asked Dr. Elders about masturbation’s potential for discouraging early sexual activity. Her frank response, “I think it is something that is part of human sexuality and a part of something that perhaps should be taught,” got her fired by President Bill Clinton. Hello, sexual hypocrisy.