Girls Day & Boys Day- Japan

Year in and year out things have to be done a certain way. Why are they done this way or that way? Tradition! Sometimes there is no idea where the tradition actually started. There might be ideas as to the origin, but nothing definite.  Girls day and Boys day in Japan are festivals honoring 'girls' and 'boys'-- one held in March and the other in May.

It is no wonder my Japanese friends told me Katrina needed to be dressed up in a Kimono. A wee Kimono, making her look ever so sweet. We didn't have the full doll set which other Japanese girls had. Those are normally passed down from generation to generation.  Despite the lack of the traditional doll display, Katrina enjoyed being dressed up. 

The boys day in May is celebrated with kite like fish flying on the end of a pole. They look like they are actually swimming as the wind whips them around. A symbol of a strong and healthy boy. Apparently the day in May has been changed to children's day- but everyone realizes it is still 'boys' day.'  

An interesting thought: Girls' day is celebrated with dolls sitting in an organized row. Boys day is celebrated with the free flying fish. Are the Japanese females being prepared from young to realize ultimately they must maintain the traditonal order which has gone on for generations before them?