Menarche/ Coming of Age

Throughout our lives we pass through various stages, change our status and reach countless milestones. Marking a rite of passage with ceremony can be a very powerful and effective way in crossing the threshold into the unknown landscape that awaits. A ceremony will provide reflection on what has been and will empower the honouree with courage and excitement to move into the next stage. Rites of passage can be both challenging and celebratory and marking them with a ceremony can provide the proverbial doorway required to make this transition.

Transitioning from childhood into adolescence is often a time of confusion, of mystery, of fear of our changing bodies and minds, and sometimes, even of shame. Many of us became teenagers under a veil of embarrassment and a sense that there was something wrong with us.

What if during this sacred time, we acknowledged these profound changes in the form of a ceremony that would help us to cross the threshold into our next stage of life? What if we honoured and celebrated our youth marking their beginning of adulthood while letting go of their childhood?

Traditional cultures around the world have a history of honouring their youth with coming-of-age ceremonies. Many religions have coming-of-age celebrations such as the sacrament of Confirmation in the Roman Catholic Church and Bar or Bat Mitzvahs in the Jewish tradition.

If your own traditions do not celebrate this rite of passage, I can help you design a suitable ceremony to honour and celebrate the young, developing person in your family. Through this ceremony you can help them embrace this time of change and show your support and love, as they find their own way.

Sarah (Fall 2010)

“I was often told that growing up was difficult so I was scared to get older and go through adolescence. When I hit this specific stage in my life, it was so nice to be lovingly “welcomed” by the most important women in my life. These women had been present at my birth, had been with me every step of the way, and gathering with them for this ceremony showed me just how important they were to me, and how important I was to them… and then I wasn’t scared anymore.”

“I am not old… I am rare. I am the standing ovation at the end of a play. I am the retrospective of my life as art. I am the hours connected like dots into good sense. I am the fullness of existing. You think I am waiting to die…But I am waiting to be found. I am a treasure. I am a map. And these wrinkles are imprints of my journey. Ask me anything.” ~ Samantha Reynolds

As women, we take on many roles in our lives: daughters, sisters, wives, partners and mothers, to name a few. The accumulated years and experiences bring hard earned wisdom. As we finally come into our own, we can step back and look at our life, take stock of it all and celebrate the good times and the bad times, the easy parts and the challenging parts. The Crone Ceremony aids in your transition and helps you to welcome your inner old (er) wise woman. This ceremony can be done alone or with a gathering of your closest women friends and family. We celebrate all that you have been and all that you are becoming as you move into this next stage of life. It is about embracing the aging process and welcoming the twilight years with open arms.

Donna (Fall, 2015)

“After six years of retirement from forty years of nursing, raising children and a busy life, I felt lost. I wondered if I would feel useless as my 70’s loomed before me. Even though my home was happy, I had many hobbies and interests, great friends, a solid marriage and beautiful grandchildren, I felt this nagging feeling that I am over halfway to the end of my life. As my 70th birthday approached, Julie spoke with me about a ceremony that would honour this next stage of my life. I worried that it would focus on my old age but I was so mistaken. She gathered my closest women friends and in a series of powerful rituals, spoken word, story telling and meaningful symbolism, my life was honoured. I felt so cherished, loved and needed in my new status of ‘wise woman.’ This Crone Honouring Ceremony was exactly what I needed to view this next stage in my life in a more positive light. I was rejuvenated in knowing deeply that life does get better in later years.”