1. You were the talk of the school, and if you lived in a small town, the talk of the whole community.
As you may or may not know, Bar/Bat Mitzvahs are some of the most important events in a Jewish person's life, especially within the synagogue community. Therefore, it lends itself to being something that gets talked about for days, weeks, and even months in advance. Plus, for all of your friends and family who had never experienced one before, there was something new and unique about the entire thing. Thus, they most likely wouldn't stop talking about it, both before and after.
2. You got to buy new clothes to wear to your service, Shabbat service the night before, and for your party.
Most likely, now that you've grown up, your family is not forking out their credit cards to pay for your shopping expenses. But, if you can remember way back to seventh grade, your mom was more than excited to take you to the mall to find "the perfect dress" (in my case, dresses) for your special occasions.
3. People still have your "giveaways" even though it has been like five or more years.
It's tradition to give something to your party guests as a thank you for attending, and also a not-so-secret way of showing everyone else who didn't show up what they were missing out on. Sweatsuits (yes, both sweatshirts and sweatpants) are commonly used as a giveaway on the East Coast, but where I came from, back in the day a cool CD sufficed. I still have my CD with my picture on it, and I'm seriously ashamed of the songs I picked to be remembered by. I should have known Justin Bieber was going to be a bad call.
4. Everyone who went couldn't stop talking about it at recess for the next week.
Everyone knows that the most important things over the weekend will be the only topic of any lunch or recess conversation for at least the next week, and if you're lucky, maybe the next two or three. Who danced with whom, who sat with whom, who brought what gifts, how good the food was, etc. Needless to say, I won't be that talked about again unless I become the next star on "The Real Housewives," or run for President.
5. It was the height of your work ethic.
I went to Sunday school and Wednesday Night School for eight years to prepare for my Bat Mitzvah, in addition to meeting with a tutor once a week, for a year, to learn all of the actual Hebrew for the service. I was able to learn how hard work pays off (literally) but, unfortunately, all of that great work ethic stopped once the actual service was over. Needless to say, my schooling went into a deep decline afterwards.
