Two

.........Through many nights and days we've come. We've triumphed and prevailed, and the the light of mornings,some, our might has been unveiled....

These are the words i hear every morning-a reminder of our past.  How we've lived and died for safety, protection, honor.  We've fought through raging seas in an unsettling storm.  The world our forefathers knew has long been forgotten by sight and has fallen in to the ruin of our memories- only remembered by legends told to us by the Greats around the events table in the Great Hall of Records.  They filed all of those in my year into that room filled with relics and momentos of our past for one night of storytellinig and learning about how we came to be.  We ate traditional foods and sang traditional songs, but we listened intently when they told the stories of war and chaos that out of them were born our great society. We knew this would be the only time we heard them, and from these tellings we must decide our future.  It was a grand affair. The elders congradulated each one of us on our changings and wished us best of luck in our adult lives and duties, but for me, that's all it was- change.

In the days to come, my usual, youthful duties were traded.  Instead of tending to the garden, i began learning my houshold duties.  I would wake up after the men left for work and clean the house, organize events, cook at noon, and tend to the children.  These were all customary roles for women so i was not suprised when I began these duties. I was, however, nervous about the coming ceremony.  My father, as customary, was given a list of three names and a profile outline of three of the new men in our society.  He had to chose a husband for me, and in only three weeks, my family would become his family,  my home would become his home, and my name would become his name.  This is how the greats secured our future.  We were matched with who the elders saw fit.  Of course, i had met all of these new men. After all, i went to primary school with them, but that was when they were boys. Now, they are men with a new job and home and, soon, a new wife to take care of, and after that- children.  Knowing them each by name, however, gave me a sense of security.  I knew what i wanted in a husband and i could see a few i wouldnt mind.  There was Nathan- He was so handsom, and there was Tyler- he was strong, but there was also Lucas, and oh how i hoped it would be him.  His dreamy blue eyes and blonde hair, his strong body, his smell, and his mind- he was all i could ask for, and my dad was friends with his dad, so that was a plus. 

In the days to come, i kept my mind of f the ceremony and lucas by keeping up with my household duties.  The jobs got easier, but they were boring all i did was wash and clean and wash and clean and bake and wash and clean. It was a neverending cycle of my dads dirty socks and dirty dishes.  But there was some fun to it.  I learned to curl my hair, got a new- adult- wardrobe, and learned to make myself prettier- all to please my husband of course.   It seemed like all i was supposed to be was a maid and something to look at and play with.   I was expected to look my best at all times. And i did- or i tried to. But we practiced our skills and learned new ones, and by the evening before my wedding i was considered the perfect bride.  That night i prepared my body for the next days events.  i soaked my hands and feet in oil to soften them, and i drank a mixture of carrots, peaches, oranges, spinach.  Each of these was to ensure health and beauty.  I fell asleep in my childhood home- as customary- for the last time. I was not yet fifteen....