Truth be told, when the Junior Class Student Council announced details for the junior prom on Instagram on Tuesday evening, April 6, I was incredibly excited and I’m far from the only one; the student body is, too.  

For many, dresses have already been purchased, promposals promposed, tables organized and pre-pictures arranged. And I’m all for it. The grind and fatigue of school during these unprecedented times has taken an immense toll on all of us, and the junior prom set for May 14 at the Maple Grove Forest Lodge provides the perfect end-of-year gift. 

So, junior class, are you ready? Because this is really happening. 

Prom.  

I don’t even know what prom is. I don’t have a date or a suit (yet), but when I handed in my check on Wednesday, April 14, securing my ticket to the event, I smiled because instead of getting dressed up for fifteen minutes worth of senior pictures, I can now get dressed up to take an hour worth of pre-pictures. 

All jokes aside, when speaking with the junior class, it was refreshing to see people passionate about something; it was refreshing to see people going overboard about something; it was amazing to see people — the student body — finally lively about something again. 

“It felt pretty good because it’s been a whole year online and some of those people I haven’t seen since last year when quarantine started,” junior class President Isaiah Nathaniel said. “It was great to see everybody excited and ready [for prom] to celebrate with us. To see everyone getting hyped up for this junior class event, because we haven’t had something like this in a while, felt really good.”

Seeing the entrance of door 12 bustling with anxious bodies from all directions worried about purchasing a $100 prom ticket before they sold out made things feel normal again. While Wednesday afternoon’s ticket sale was surely chaotic, it was a good chaos. A welcomed chaos that provided a five-minute escape from this never-ending-nightmare-pandemic. 

“I mean at first it was a little overwhelming just being crowded by a bunch of students while I’m sitting at a table, but after that kind of went away, it was nice knowing that people are excited for what the student council is planning and they’re looking forward to the dancing, the music, the food and everything at the whole venue,” junior class Vice President Alessandro Frias said. 

It felt great to hear the gossip about the latest dates and dresses and all of the superficial nonsense that is associated with prom. You can never bring back the past, but things felt normal instead of this mask-wearing, hand-sanitizing, social distancing society we’ve become. 

So, if you are on the fence about attending the junior prom, reconsider; you may have a better time than you think. 

And for those who are going, I look forward to seeing you there.