Speaking of proms...

As Shelby prepares for her Junior prom, my thoughts drift back to my own. We only had the Senior prom, one chance for that memorable "dream" night.

At the time I wasn't even sure I was going to the dance. I didn't have a boyfriend then, and I was too shy to hint around to anybody I didn't know well. But one day Sue introduced me to a friend of hers that I had never met.

His name was Richard, and when she said "This is Stephanie," he gave me a huge smile and said,

"Stella! That fits you better. I love you madly!"

YES!! Rick is the one who named me Stella. I had never met anybody who was so zany and easy to talk to. Within a few days he asked me to the prom and I was totally smitten.



I am writing this post more for myself than anything. I am finding that my memories of those days are fading more each year, and I want to keep them a bit longer. Perhaps one day my kids will want to know more about my younger days.



This is the 1973 Stevenson High School Senior prom at the Mayflower Meeting House in Plymouth, Michigan. The theme was "Old Fashioned Love Song." Yes, those are genuine crushed velvet tuxes in the photo!



This is our portrait taken at the prom. I think it set me back five dollars.






A lot of my friends complained later that they didn't have much fun at the dance, but we three couples cut loose and had a blast. Here are Sue and Arthur, and Kathy (now known as Kathy the Brainiac!) and Mike.


While scanning the photos for this post I felt a lump of sadness in my heart. It was so long ago and so much water has flowed under the bridge, but it came back to me how I really cared about Richard. The prom was our first date. I never have laughed so much as I did with him. He was my first love, became a dear friend and I miss him. I wrote about him awhile back here.

So now here I am 35 years later helping my own daughter prepare for her prom. I wonder if Alex and the rest of her friends will play as big a role in her life as my friends have in mine?

It hit me that it's a real possibility, which makes me realize how close Shelby is to adulthood. I'm not sure how I feel about that. That would be a good topic for another post, but I don't want to think about that right now.

I'll think about it in the morning! (Maybe.)