Junior Prom Has Hearts Aflutter - Mom’s
Raise your hand if your teenage son would rather go to the junior prom than a basketball game, wear a suit and tie than jeans and a T-shirt or spend his money on a corsage than a new CD.
Keep your hands up the 20 seconds it’ll take me to jot down your three names.
Now, raise your hand if your daughter equates the junior prom with Cinderella’s ball. Of course, she’s Cinderella and all her adolescent awkwardness disappears beneath a sleek, sequined gown.
I’m sure my hand isn’t the only one up.
The closets in my house hold four satiny numbers with spaghetti straps, slits up the side and sparkling bodices. Each worn once. Each leaving an irreparable dent in my wallet and on my soul.
I dread November every year because of junior prom. Anxiety hits my house the day after Halloween like a low-grade fever. It’s a couples’ dance. Even the tickets are sold by the couple. Single students are welcome, but the kids know: it’s a couples’ dance.
My two daughters are unattached, mostly by choice. They’ve had short-lived romances and moved on. They work 12-hour days at school and swim practice. Boyfriends don’t fit into the schedule.
Which is no problem until junior prom. Most boys don’t dress up by choice. Some will sacrifice to win points with a special girl. But most would prefer a root canal.
With no automatic dates, my daughters’ options disappear quickly. Good company is everything, so they conspire to interest the right boys. But their right boys are laid-back types repulsed by any event that requires a button-down shirt.
As the window for dress shopping shrinks, the anxiety level in our house rises at the same rate my heart sinks.
Inwardly, I rail against the schools for forcing kids into couples, tampering with my daughters’ self-esteem, unnecessarily exposing them to frustration and rejection. I don’t sleep. My blood pressure shoots up. I condemn all males.
Fortunately, my girls’ pool of friends includes a few brave boys who come through for them at the last minute. Excitement replaces angst. My daughters laugh that I thought their self-worth was at risk while their only worry was missing a chance to play dress-up. They love junior prom.
My mistake, pass the Mylanta - and my credit card.
Says who?
Libby’s Dorothy Carter Steiner was rudely reminded recently that old age is relative. She was vacationing in Montana when she stopped to chat with a teenage girl grooming her horse. The girl asked if she’d seen Dorothy fishing at the creek the day before.
Dorothy said no, and the girl replied, “Oh. It must have been another old lady.”
Says Dorothy, “Until that day I didn’t feel that I was anywhere near my 61 years.”
Wrap it up
Forget wrapping worries this year. The Coeur d’Alene Public Library is running a wrapping booth at the Coeur d’Alene Plaza shops until Christmas Eve.
Money is the goal, but the library also needs wrappers. If you’ve secretly admired your wrapping prowess for years, call the library at 769-2315 and offer to help. This could be your big break.
Holiday magic
Give me Christmas over Independence Day any time. Both parades in downtown Coeur d’Alene are great, but the winter parade the day after Thanksgiving is magical. Maybe it’s the cold air or the glittering lights or the excited little kids when they see Santa.
What’s your favorite winter event in North Idaho? Nominate something heartwarming for Cynthia Taggart, “Close to Home,” 608 Northwest Blvd., Suite 200, Coeur d’Alene, ID 83814; fax to 765-7149; call 765-7128; or e-mail to cynthiat@spokesman.com.
, DataTimes