8th grade is a BIG year, the year you "move on" to high school or graduate from middle school. You will soon celebrate this process with a ceremony in which each one of you is recognized for your abilities, talents, and strengths as an individual. In Jonas' Ceremony of Twelve a similar process happens, as we read in chapters 6-9. We often call this "moving on" a "rite of passage" or "coming of age". What other ceremonies have you had or will you have that are a "rite of passage"?
Imagine someone from a different community or culture were watching your move-on ceremony. They might find it a little strange that we have the tradition of wearing a funny-looking, flat, square hat with this little colorful string that dangles in front of the face. They may not understand why we wear a silky nightgown-like robe. Do you? (Read about it in "The History of Graduation Day"). Just like we found the community's ceremony a little different, we might find this 13-year-old Apache girl's "coming of age" unique (definitely compared to a USA-style "Super Sweet Sixteen"). The point is, every community and culture has their own way of recognizing important landmarks in life, such as the "coming of age".
What ceremonies do you/will you celebrate as you move through life? What "rite of passage" or "coming of age" will you have? How are these similar and different to those of the community? Feel free to share here any ideas that came up in class while working with chp. 6-9, such as which Assignment you may have been given if you were a member of the community, the "timeline" of life that each community member follows, etc. Make sure to check out all the links above so you can use those to help enhance your ideas and comment!
