Odins Procession

Odins Procession

  • Submitted By: sheci2
  • Date Submitted: 11/08/2010 11:36 AM
  • Category: English
  • Words: 1210
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Sheci Herbert
Professor Baker
English 110
3rd September 2007
Odin’s Procession
Every September of the new school year the students of Valhalla High School prepare themselves for one of the most anticipated days of the year Odin’s Procession. It is a day filled with spirit that diminishes the fine line that separates the social classes. For freshman it is their right of passage and also their first taste of high school tradition. For sophomores and juniors it’s a day to officially call themselves upper classmen and to take a break from the pressures of school and socializing. For seniors, it’s a day of mixed emotions. Reality falls in as if it was dropped from the sky, and reminds them that not only will this be their last Odin’s procession, but in less than nine months the doors to high school will officially close. This is the day that the students of Valhalla will celebrate the new faces, and reconnect with the old. They will come together as if they were a small country celebrating their independence, with one common goal, to be proud to be a Norseman.
You can’t understand the importance of tradition without knowing the history behind it. To be a true Norseman at Valhalla you have to do two things: participate in Odin’s procession and know the history of what exactly you are participating in. Valhalla is Norwegian for “hall of the slain.” In Norse mythology Valhalla is where the spirits of the slain Vikings would rest after fighting in a glorious battle. According to Christianity, when we die if we fulfill all of our responsibilities in the flesh our spirit will go to heaven. The Vikings believed as long as you died a distinguished death, such as going to war, your spirit would go to Valhalla. Similar to Greek Mythology the Vikings believed in many gods. The most esteemed of the gods was known as Odin. Odin ruled over both gods and humans, and had a hammer that was not only a weapon but was said to have power.
During the first two...