Rite of Passage

As little girls grow up there are certain points that they look forward to when coming of age. As a girl reaches the age of 15, she starts looking forward to her 16th Birthday. This is a big day for many girls, just like looking forward to their wedding day. When a girl turn 16, she is of legal age to receive her driver's license in most states. Also in some states this may be the age of consent. In some homes this may also mean that she is of age to start dating. Many girls will have a Sweet 16 Birthday Party. A sweet 16 party can be formal, casual, or semi-formal depending how big one may want to make it. A party can range from just family to a big formal parties like a prom

Sweet 16 parties are popular to teenage girls in the United States. In the early 80s there was a movie called "Sixteen Candles." This became a favorite movie among young people during this time. This just goes to show how big turning 16 is to a young girl. This is a time for a girl to transition from people seeing her as a child to seeing her as young adult and not have the responsibilities that goes along with an adult. The party is usually thrown by the parents, and the daughter is allowed to invite friends and family.

Many families have some traditions that will do at these parties. The first one is lighting of the candle. With this, the birthday girl will light 16 candles that could be on her cake. The first candle will represent parents. The second candle is for siblings. If there are no siblings the candle can stand for grandparents. The third, fourth, fifth, and sixth candles are for the rest of the family members. The candles seven through 14 stand for friends in her life. The 15 candle the birthday girls best friend or friends in her life. The sixteenth candle for the special make friend or boyfriend. Many times parents may put a 17 candle on there just for good luck.

Another tradition that make place is the father daughter dance. With this, the father can spend a little extra time that night with his daughter. They will dance in front of others as they sit and watch them. This is also done at many weddings. They will dance to a slow song, and it is usually

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first song and dance of the night.

A final tradition that can go together would be the show and tiara ceremony. The shoe ceremony this where the birthday girl will take a seat in a chair and her grandfather, uncle, and father will come up to her with a heel on a decorative pillow. The birthday girl will usually be wearing flats and her father will help her into a heel. This is showing that she is going from a child to a woman. The tiara ceremony is much like the shoe ceremony except for the mother comes with the tiara. This means the same thing as the shoe ceremony. The father and mother often do this together.

A girl only turn 16 once, and this is a day that she will want to remember forever. So making that day special is a big deal to many girls. This is something that girls have to look forward as they are growing up. Following traditions is something that these girls can look forward to as they are growing up.