I have to ask. Do high schools still have dances? Now, I'm not talking about date dances, like homecoming or proms. I've seen the darling pictures the proud Moms post on Facebook of those special occasions.
I'm talking about just regular dances on a Friday or Saturday night...to give the kids something to do...to help them learn how to act around the opposite sex. (Gosh! Did I just sound really old?) The reason I even ask is because some of my fondest high school memories are of the dances we enjoyed as teens...and if today's kids don't have these opportunities, they're missing out on some great memory-makers.
Most of our school dances took place in the school's cafeteria. Nothing fancy... Different clubs or groups would sponsor them as fundraisers. The tables and chairs would be cleared away, making room for a "dance floor". A band, a sound system or just a record player would be brought in...and teachers and parents acted as chaperones. Let the fun begin!
Because we wore school uniforms during the week, we got to wear our "good" clothes to dances and social things. Skirts, sweaters, hose, loafers, Wind Song or Emeraude cologne...we were all set! When we'd arrive at the dance, the excitement would set in! "Who was going to be here?" "Would so and so ask me to dance?" "Do I look okay?"
The cafeteria was dark. except for the lighting that came with the music. Good! It was easier to blend in, as we'd lean against the wall, waiting to be asked to slow dance...or until a group of girls, got up the nerve to go out on the dance floor to "fast-dance", anxious to try out the moves we saw on "Bandstand" or "Soul Train"the week before. (Yeah right! Like we could do THAT!!) Funny, but the guys weren't into fast dancing back then....well it was their loss.)
The music and laughter of these school dances had kids meeting kids they didn't get to know in class. The need to summon up the courage to ask a girl to dance or the disappointment of being a girl who didn't get asked, were hard lessons we learned at those dances. All part of growing up... The night always seemed to go quickly until there'd be one last song played before the lights came back on, signaling the end of a fun night.
When we were in the lower grades, somebody's Dad would pick up the group for the ride home...we'd recount the evening's happenings and get dropped off, with memories of a good time, fresh in our minds. When we were older, if we had someone in our group who had their driver's license, we'd all pile into a car and go somewhere for a Coke and conversation... probably about "who liked who" or what somebody wore that night.
This would probably sound pretty dorky to the kids growing up now, but those high school dances were a big part of our social lives back then. And I can't help but wonder how many sweet, young romances got their start with a "May I Have This Dance"? in a high school cafeteria those many years ago?
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