beneath white mountain in New Mexico the Mescalero Apache reservation prepares for a Coming of Age ritual over the span of four days 13-year-old dashina cois will pass through ancient tests of strength endurance and character that will make her a woman the Mescalero Apache hold the ritual every 4th of July it's a grueling ordeal intended to prepare girls for the trials of Womanhood when she was a little girl I knew this is what I wanted to have for her des's mother Mallette has spent more than a year preparing for this week of ceremony family members and friends will help her feed and care for more than 50 guests the family's most important task is selecting Dash's medicine woman Zelda yazza will instruct Dash in the ways of traditional Apache Womanhood on fourways into the back open the 4-day ceremony encapsulates the Apache creation store Dasha will move through the stages of Life infant child adolescent woman culminating in an allight dance that will test her endurance the ritual begins with the rising of the Morning Star the ceremony requires dashina to live by strict rules these four days mean little sleep scant food and the need to set aside emotion throughout the ordeal she must wear a face of stoic resolve feel very excited and happy even though I can't smile but I'll try to show it in some way before dashina joins the other girls she is blessed dusted with pollen the symbol of [Music] fertility the girls start their journey in a sacred teepe built by their male relatives that's go right now they're putting the [Music] Tipp the basket is filled with pollen and other ceremonial objects as their ancestors did the girls run toward the Rising Sun circling the basket four times to Mark the four stages of Life the fourth and final Day brings Dash to the cusp of Womanhood she is ascends the hill to pray to the Mountain Spirits for a long and successful [Music] life with Darkness near it's time to dance beside the ceremonial fire Dash and the other girls will Dance All Night Long much of the time hidden in the big [Music] tepee more than 10 hours later Dash is still dancing the medicine men greet the Sun a signal that the final test is near the girls faces are painted with white clay symbolizing the goddess on their last circuit around the sacred basket the girls wipe away the symbolic clay with the falling of the Tepee their right of passage is complete Das receives her Apache woman's name Morning Star feather Morning Star feather Morning Star feather yeah everything went well she's just going to be a strong woman her community gathers acknowledging that this girl has earned the right to live as a woman of the tribe as an Apache woman Dash serves as a symbol of her culture renewing and protecting a way of life that's in danger of Vanishing