girl had her first period, the family sometimes celebrated by eating red-colored rice and beans (sekihan). the color of blood and the red of sekihan are not related. all the rice of ancient times of japan was red. since rice was precious in ancient japan (usually, millet was eaten), it was eaten only during the celebration. sekihan was the tradition of an ancient custom. the celebration was kept a secret from extended family until the rice was served. in some indian communities, young women are given a special menarche ceremony called ruthu sadangu. the mescalero apaches place high importance on their menarche ceremony and it is regarded as the most important ritual in their tribe. each year, there is an eight-day event celebrating all of the girls who have menstruated in the past year. the days are split between feasting and private ceremonies reflecting on their new womanly status. rituals of learning in australia, the aborigines treat a girl to "love magic". she is taught the ways of womanhood by the other women in her tribe. her mother builds her a menstruation hut to which she confines herself for the remainder of her menses. the hut is burned and she is bathed in the river at the end of menstruation. when she returns to the village, she is paired with a man who will be her husband. in the united states, some public schools have a sex education program that teaches girls about menstruation and what to expect at the onset of menarche (often this takes place during the fourth grade). historically menstruation has been a social taboo and girls were taught about menarche and menstruation by their mothers or a female role model. then, and to an extent now, menstruation was a private matter and a girl's menarche was not a community phenomenon. rituals of cleansing or purification the ulithi tribe of micronesia call a girl's menarche kufar. she goes to a menstrual house, where the women bathe her and recite spells. she will have to return to the menstruation hut every time she menstruates. her parents build her a private hut that she will live in until she is married. in sri lanka, an astrologer is contacted to study the alignment of stars when the girl experiences menarche because it is believed that her future can be predicted. the women of the family then gather in her home and scrub her in a ritual bathing ceremony. her family then throws a familial party at which the girl wears white and may receive gifts. in ethiopia, beta jewish women were separated from male society and sent to menstruation huts during menarche and every menstruation following as the blood associated with menstruation in the beta jewish culture was believed to be impure. the beta jews built their villages surrounding and near bodies of water specifically for their women to have a place to clean themselves. the menstruation huts were built close to these bodies of water. rituals of transformation and scarification in nigeria, the tiv ethnic group cut four lines into the abdomen of their girls during menarche. the lines are supposed to represent fertility. rituals of strength the navajo have a celebration called kinaalda (kinn-all-duh). girls are expected to demonstrate their strength through footraces. the girls make a cornmeal pudding for the tribe to taste. the girls who experience menarche wear special clothes and style their hair like the navajo goddess "changing woman". the nuu-chah-nulth (also known as the nootka) believe that physical endurance is the most important quality in young women. at menarche the girl is taken out to sea and left there to swim back. movies and tv in the horror movie carrie (1976), an adaptation of the stephen king novel of the same name, protagonist carrie white experiences her first period as she showers after the school gym class. unaware of what is happening to her, she panics and pleads for help, but the other girls respond by bullying her. carrie's first period unleashes her violent powers and is central to her dangerous and out of control transformation. this theme is common to horror movies, another notable example being the canadian horror movie ginger snaps (2000), where the protagonist's first period is central to her gradual transformation into a werewolf. the theme of transformation around the menarche is similarly present in turning red (2022), although the film also explores other aspects of puberty as a whole and the protagonist does not actually start her first period. girls experiencing their first period is part of many movies, particularly ones that include coming-of-age plot lines, such as the blue lagoon (1980), the company of wolves (1984), an angel at my table (1990), my girl (1991), return to the blue lagoon (1991), eve’s bayou (1997), and a walk on the moon (1999). menarche is also discussed in an episode of the animated series baymax! (2022) in which the eponymous healthcare robot helps a girl deal with her first period.