red rules!

i certainly didn't have one, nor did any girl i knew...it wasn't even mentioned in any of the prevailing cultural contexts. at best, our periods were to be viewed as an inconvenience; in more dogma-driven households, it could be seen in very negative ways indeed. my daughter is almost 10 now, and i have already bought and put away a beautiful red and white woven belt/sash from central europe, which i plan to give to her on the occasion of her first period. i plan to buy her a pair of ruby earrings as well to celebrate this event. if she has friends who are interested in becoming strong and joyous young women, i will be thrilled to throw a party for my daughter and invite them and their mothers. if her friends (or their moms) seem less than comfortable with evolving sexuality, maybe we'll just have a family party. for us that would mean myself, my daughter, maybe my mother, and a few good friends of mine. i'd love to think her dad would want to join in part of our celebration, but i'm not sure how he will feel about all this "female stuff"...i'd love to see menarche celebrations become the normal thing, along with rite of passage ceremonies for boys, new-motherhood rituals, and menopause/ elder-hood celebrations for women and men moving into the wisdom-giver years. life is sacred, especially female life because of our ability to conceive, bear, and nourish; we should celebrate all the waypoints of our human life cycle with joy and affirmation of this sacredness.