THE RITE TO BE ALL RIGHT…

From Rebecca Skinner
Celebrants & Celebrations Network Australia Celebrant Member
www.celebratinglifeschapters.com

Many cultures have celebrated a young person’s ‘coming-of-age’, and it is still marked in the Jewish community as a Bar and Bat Mitzvah, when boys turn 13 and girls 12 and in Korea by the Confucian ‘Gwallye’ from ages 15 upwards. But in Western cultures this tradition is all but ignored. The Celebrants and Celebrations network thinks it is high time to reintroduce this important ceremony.

The TCN understands that the ‘in-between’ time spanning childhood and adulthood  – adolescence – is a very challenging time for many young people. Guidelines and boundaries are uncertain for many families and in Australia it is a period associated with high suicide rates, alcohol and other drug related problems, unwanted sex and pregnancies and increased risk of depressive and other mental illnesses.

So a celebration can be a very positive step in helping to guide young people and their families through what is often a difficult to navigate maze.

Involving a celebrant in a young person’s coming of age means tapping into the very best of world-wide practices, plus the sensitive understanding of each adolescent’s personality and interests. A celebrant can draw on the traditions of Quinceanera, celebrated by the Puerto Ricans when their teenagers turn 15, perhaps with a shoe ceremony where a girl graduates from flat shoes to high heels or a doll ceremony representing leaving childhood behind. Or they can look to the coming-of-age ceremonies found in almost all aboriginal societies, some include posing a riddle, listing the child's talents, optionally choosing a new name and receiving a symbol of adulthood.

In the US a rite of passage which used to be practised by the Igbo tribe of Nigeria, is slowly being reintroduced. Originally one of the most important events in an Apache female’s life, nowadays it normally involves the adolescent spending time with older mentors, who teach them teamwork, leadership, responsibilities, moral decision making etc. Australian celebrants help celebrate a young person’s arrival at age 13; help clarify the uncertain nature of this ‘in between’ time; acknowledge the benefits and challenge of this time of the gaining of independence while affirming the preciousness of life and growth and the importance of family and peer relationships.

Ceremonies can involve music, singing, story-telling, poetry, prose and dance and even processions plus the giving of Dream or Treasure boxes, or a special book all about that young person. People often choose to follow these ceremonies with the sharing of food and drink, perhaps a picnic or even a BYO lunch for family and friends.

The TCN has celebrants all over Australia who can conduct these ceremonies, so why not plan on holding one for your young teenage child? It could just help you through that difficult 'in between’ time

Rebecca Skinner
Celebrants & Celebrations Network Australia Celebrant Member
Celebrating Life’s Chapters, Your Ceremony Your Story
www.celebratinglifeschapters.com

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