An Inspirational Rite Of Passage

A lifetime is divided by many years, years into days, days into hours, and hours into minutes. But out of these minutes, some stand out the most making our most memorable of our memories. Whether you felt joy, anger, or sadness, it is the way that we felt at that second what makes us remember that moment and what made us change from who we were. It is an experience where you know you can’t go back. In the following passage, I will talk about my rite of passage.

In Conrad Philip Kottak’s “Rite of Passage” he mentions the three stages of a rite of passage. Anthropologist Arnold Van Gennep defines these stages as Separation, Margin, and Aggregation. Victor Turner, another anthropologist, focused on Margin, which he referred to as liminality. Not only can a rite of passage be an individual experience, but it can also be a communal experience which Turner called “communitas.” Many of us experience this “communitas” in different ways such as my Hispanic culture that experiences quinceneras. Quinceneras are a rite of passage for young girls’ transition from adolescence to womanhood. I for one never experienced this rite of passage.

Have you ever wondered if the ordeals you went through could become a “rite of passage?” These ordeals could be a big event that could change a person’s entire foundation, such as marriage, or it can be something small, like being inspired to cook because of feedback. The novella, “The Body” written by Gordie Lachance, elaborates about the author’s childhood where he and his friends went through an ordeal that is a rite of passage. This ordeal was considered a journey for the boys as they believed in the frame and glory once they found the corpse of Ray Browser, a young boy around the same age as the author and his friends. The journey started out as an easygoing adventure, a playful type that could be considered as an innocent boy running in the park playing tag with his buddies. However, the journey changes into a more “serious business” for the author and his friends have to face many circumstances where it becomes flight-or-fight situations. In the novella, Gordie reveals many insights into the characteristics of his friends and himself

The main characters Toundi from Houseboy and Firdaus from Woman at Point Zero were unable to complete their rites of passage. It is evident from the begin of both novels that neither character would be reincorporated into society due to their incapability to “follow the rules” that were set for them as second-class citizens. In Firdaus’ case, women lived in a patriarchal society where women were supposed to be the submissive gender. However, she demonstrates the need for women to take charge of their lives and not live under the power of men. Toundi, on the other hand, attempts to encounter a life filled with advancement and improvements from the Whites, however soon realizes that the French have no intention of allowing Black people to

A twelve year old boy holding an Airsoft, sitting on a swing in a park at 3:30 p.m. in broad daylight was shot not two seconds after officers arrived at the scene. He died the following day from injuries.

I gripped the wheel and made a sharp left and went up the curb into the heavily landscaped median. My shiney black Charger went airborne, grazed a tree and landed on top of some shrubbery. A disaster had been averted, I was humiliated and ashamed at my negligence, but we were all alive. The people in the car ahead of me with the terrified eyes never even pulled over, they just kept on going. I sat there atop the shrubbery in my sleek black Charger, first laughing and then weeping. I never played the radio that loudly again, and that was the last time I cruised Gratiot Avenue. It was a lesson that was not lost on me. I still love cars but that moment was a slingshot into adulthood, where my carerfree reckless world gave way to booster seats, and insurance rates. Don't get me wrong, I still get goosebumps when I hear the sound of a six cylinder hemi, but from that night on I learned to understand and respect the responsibility that comes with that kind of

Watching the news is a rite of passage for any newly crowned adult. It’s a sign to you and everyone you know that you’re a grown up god dammit, you keep up with what’s going on in the world. Because of the news you can name like 75% of the presidential candidates, you’re aware of every tragedy going on overseas, and each day at work you get to ask someone if they heard about the *insert feel good story here* that you saw the previous night. The news is making you such a well-rounded and mature human being.

A recent rite of passage I went through was graduating from nursing school and becoming a RN. To complete this rite of passage I had to complete all the pre-requisites for nursing school which took me 4 years. Then I did the nursing program which was 2 years. To celebrate finishing the nursing program I attended a pinning ceremony which is a ritual where the nursing graduates get a pin that represents the completion of the education required to sit for the nursing boards. This pinning ceremony was more important than walking at graduation. The majority of my classes did not attend the graduation ceremony but all attended the pinning. Once I took the nursing license test I got a card that says registered nurse. I was finally able to call myself

Dresser related he heard a sound but didn't recognize what it was and the next thing he knew, debris was flying past, outside his left window, southbound. Just a moment after that, a gold colored vehicle went flying by, to their left. As it went by, it was in the northbound lane, closer to the sidewalk, sort of angling.

The poem Rite of Passage by Sharon Olds is a poem about a mother chaperoning her son’s birthday party. The boy and his friends are in first grade and of course they are behaving as first graders would. They say things like, “How old are you? Six. – I’m seven. –So?” (8) And “I can beat you up, / a seven says to a six” (13-14). The boys are behaving their age. The boys are competitive, irrational and youthful. However, the mother envisions her son and his friends as mature men. She first introduces them in the opening line as “guests” rather than peers or playmates. She describes them as “short men, me in first grade with smooth jaws and chins” (3-4).

The inspiring story turned motion picture depicts the story of a high school women’s basketball coach that gets hired as the coach at Texas Western where Coach Don Haskins recruits seven African-American players based on their skill level not the pigment of their skin. Throughout the movie Glory Road Coach Don Haskins’, men’s basketball coach at Texas Western, tone changes from being a critic to a supporting coach with a team that was of mixed races. Coach Haskins shows character traits of a few great people from the civil rights era including Gandhi, Martin Luther King Jr., and Maya Angelou. Although Haskins is like some great contributors during the Civil Rights Movement time that doesn’t mean that he is like all great persons because the Texas Western basketball coach is not like Malcolm X because he does not chose to use violence even when provoked unlike Malcolm X who has no problem with violence being used to achieve a common goal.

When I first started reading this story, I initially thought that the main character had died and was now in heaven or in the transition to heaven.I thought this because when the old man says “First you must see the gates” I thought of the gates to heaven and that he was just her guide to the gates because she had died on the road. I also thought that this was about the main character transitioning to heaven because at the beginning of the story she is talking about her brother saying “whom I had had to leave by the roadside a year or two round the corner. He had wasted his breath on singing, and his strength on helping others.” I thought this meant that he had also died on the same street as it says he wasted his breath indicating to me that

My faith journey has been challenged throughout my life. I have had many ups and downs, and many times when I questioned my faith. Although those times were rough, I found comfort in God and knowing that He is always there for me. One of my favorite quotes is “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me” Philippians 4:13. This quote got me through tough times when my faith was shaking.

I could feel the cold brisk air brushing up against my skin as I ventured through the darkness in this vacant parking lot on a dreary Sunday night in November. I could see a car in the distance and began to approach it. The car appeared to be an old rusted out vehicle with extremely tinted windows that were dark like death. As I looked inside the vehicle I noticed that the car was as clean as a crystal. Not a speck of dust could be found on the interior and the floor mats were completely spotless. It was as if the vehicle had never been driven before. I then put my hand on the door and proceeded to step inside of the vehicle. As I did so I felt a sensation through my whole body that made me tingle. It was an unwelcoming sensation as if I was entering a whole new world. As I sat down there's was a smell, a sheer clean smell similar to that of a fresh load of laundry. Goosebumps came about all over my body as adrenaline rushed through my veins. I put my hands on the steering wheel and my mind took me into another dimension. Taking a glance in the rearview mirror I could see a mysterious person approaching the vehicle. As I examined the person I came to the conclusion that this must be the owner of the vehicle. I noticed they were dressed in all black and carrying what seemed to be a grocery bag of some sort. In panic, I got out of the car and looked at what appeared to be a male figure. The man was very masculine and tall. His mere presence was enough to strike fear into

I would like to reflect on a few key moments of my spiritual journey from childhood that has led me to my call to ministry. I do believe that as the prophet Jeremiah was called before his birth (Jeremiah 1:5) that some are called and know their purpose from an early age while others find their path later after stumbling through life. Perhaps it might be that they have heard the call but were uncertain or unwilling to answer the call. Looking back on my life’s journey, I can see the “God moments” and how they have influenced my faith journey.