prom season

so today . . . we went to rubio's at the towne center for dinner. it was such a nice day that we sat outside to eat. and soon realized that somewhere tonight, there will be a prom . . .

it wasn't hard to figure out. our first clue was the gigantic hummer limo illegally parked in front of starbucks. since we are several miles from hollywood, i was pretty sure it wasn't brad pitt's ride. there was also the constant (and colorful) parade of couples going back and forth, back and forth. it was quite a site.

each high school has their prom on a different night, so we see high school kids all decked out in formal wear for five or six saturday nights in a row, both in the fall and again in the spring. i don't know where else they congregate, but apparently the towne center is one of the places to see and be seen! and it is quite a show . . .

the girls are the ones to watch. the guys are all wearing either black or white formal wear with a colored shirt, vest, or tie--to match their date's dress. those boys, i'll bet they have no say in what they are going to wear. can you imagine a guy saying to his date, "well, i want to wear a green shirt, so you need to find a green dress . . . " oh no, i don't think that is how it works at all! those girls have probably spent weeks looking for just the right dress (and shoes, and handbag, and hair ornaments . . . )

so let's talk about the shoes. i am highly entertained by watching these girls try to walk in their fancy shoes! it is hysterical!! i remember when diandra was graduating from high school. she had a lovely black floaty tea length dress to wear. and so, she got some cute black shoes with about a two inch spiky heel--well, as spiky as a two inch heel can be. she was graduating at the crystal cathedral, and all the floors there are marble (and slippery!!) as i watched her try to walk in those shoes on our tile floors, i thought to myself, "she is going to fall. there is no way she is going to be able to walk on those marble floors without slipping and falling." you see, diandra was a flipflop girl--i don't think she had ever walked in any kind of heel before! and she moved very gingerly and somewhat flat-footedly in those fancy shoes. let's just say as lovely as she was, her movements were more tentative than graceful.

and i am reminded of that every year when i see these girls trying to walk in their new shoes! first of all, many times the shoes are either too big or too small--which of course makes walking difficult. i don't know why they don't get shoes that fit . . . and most of them buy shoes with impossibly high spiky heels--their feet have to be killing them! anyone who has ever walked in a high spiky heel knows that there is some skill involved in being able to walk in them without looking awkward--and most of these girls don't have it yet. the boys are ambling along, often in their canvas shoes, looking just too cool. but their dates are hobbling around praying they remain upright . . .

then there are the dresses. we always see such a variety, and to this point we have not seen two girls in the same dress (which of course would be the ultimate horror!) it is always interesting to see the styles that have been chosen. there are long dresses, tea length dresses, short dresses, and dresses that just barely qualify--apparently there isn't much of a dress code for these events! there are dresses in every shade and tint of color. today rollie said that when a whole group comes by together, it looks like a flower garden. the colors are beautiful--but some of the dresses are not! really!! i feel bad for some of those girls who obviously got terrible advice about what would look good on them. sometimes i wonder if the person who said, "oh yes, get THAT dress!" was either a desperate sales person or an enemy masquerading as a friend . . .

and lastly are the accessories--the jewelry, the handbag, the hair ornaments. they sparkle!! because really, why bother with accessories if they aren't going to sparkle! that is what accessories are all about. i have known this for the last 20 years, but i am gratified to see that the rest of the world is finally catching up with me on this. i wear sparkle every day, but these girls do not. unless it is in their cosmetics, they are not all comfortable with everyday sparkle. but on this night, for their prom, they sparkle every time they move.

this isn't real life--real life is jeans and flipflops. this is the ball! and for this night, each girl is cinderella. so when i see them, they just look like little girls to me--little girls playing dress up, wearing their mom's shoes and carrying her special handbag, pretending to be grown up. they aren't grown up yet, but it won't be long now . . . and as i watch the girls, one thing is clear--each one thinks they look beautiful. and so, they do . . .

and as for diandra and the heels and the marble floors at the crystal cathedral? she managed to walk in with her graduating class, walk up and receive her diploma and return to her seat, and walk out again--all without falling. she rocked those shoes!