Remembering Prom

This past weekend was prom time in the County and it brought back some fond memories from dances past. When I was young, it seems as though the process to prepare for prom was less intense and certainly less expensive. Those were the days that we did our own hair and nails. Going to the salon for an up do was something that our mothers did and we would not have dared to let someone else do our hair for an event as important as prom. We also often borrowed a dress. Many girls had one or two formals that we kept in our closet for important events, but we did not shop exclusively for prom night. Even without the hundreds of dollars on new dress and professionally done hair and nails, we still looked pretty great. Of course, at that age, it takes very little adornment to look wonderful. Prom was held at the school and students took turns decorating for it. We doubled dated with our best friends and grabbed a shake and some fries after the dance. It was much different from the proms of today, but we loved every minute of it and created some really great memories in the process! In later years, I attended proms for professional reasons and, I must admit, proms are certainly for the young. While I enjoyed seeing the students dress up in their finest attire, the hours on a concrete floor in high heels did not hold the same appeal that it did when I was the teenager. I am always glad to see that the students made it to and from the prom without any tragedy and I love looking at pictures of my friend’s children and grandchildren online. It is a wonderful way to remember and appreciate the energy of prom time without the aching feet.

Source: K. P. Guessen