Menarche Ceremony

I didn't have one. I got mine at school and told my Mom when I got home. She helped me through the nerves of getting it because I was a wreck. Then she said it was nothing to be ashamed of. I am married and if I do have a daughter, I will give her something special to mark that time in her life and be as kind as my Mom was to me. No need to be ashamed of being a woman.

I didn't have a ceremony. I wish I did. I actually asked my mom if we were going to do anything special that day. She didn't even think I would want to celebrate it. I did want to though. So instead she bought me McDonalds that night. It was my favorite at the time and we didn't have a lot of money so McDonalds was special to have at the time. When my daughter gets hers we will do what she is comfortable with and I will be sure to know in advance if she wants to celebrate or not.

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.

No I didn't have anything at all. I wish my mom would have done a little something just me and her. It was such nervous and exciting time that it would have been nice to know my mom was proud or something or even sad because I was a women now. I hopefully will do something nice for my daughter if I ever have a daughter. I think it makes the transition easier and makes you closer to your child. I don't think I would do anything if my daughter doesn't want me to, it would have to be something we would both like, I mean it is about her

In Native American culture there are different things that are done based on what tribe you are. And if tradition is a big part of your families beliefs.