I had been dating a Senior boy for a few weeks before Easter. His parents had a dairy farm and he normally only came in on Friday or Saturday nights. I would see him on whichever night that happened to be. He was fun loving and hard working. Farm work is not easy but provides wonderful benefits for a feeling of self-worth and good health.

He asked me to the Senior Prom and said his friend was taking my best friend….and if it was OK we could double-date. Of course I gladly accepted. When the big night came I was at her home and we got ready for the prom together.

If you didn’t live through that era it would be hard for you to understand about Senior Proms at the time. Especially in a small town. For openers there was usually a pastor on the school board that strongly opposed a prom night. They did NOT approve of dancing any time for any reason. They felt it opened the door to all sorts of promiscuity and fought the prom being on school property. It never made sense to me…….if it caused the bad results they anticipated why would it be all right if it was off campus.

In the end the prom was allowed and decoration/refreshment committees were organized. Of course sponsors were required….always some of the teaching staff. The big thing for the girls was to be asked to the prom and hopefully by the boy they liked. After that, the dress was the big problem. Not many parents could provide anything very fancy so many were home sewn or borrowed.

The other problem to be faced…probably the biggest….was the “hair.” Bear in mind we didn’t have the array of products girls are accustomed to now. If it rained our “do” would wilt from the humidity….freshly washed hair seldom had any body to it and it was limp. The rollers were metal and looked like opening a crocodile’s mouth. The top clamp would hold the hair while you rolled it towards your head. Then a little rubber wheel of a thing secured it into place at the end of the curler. If you didn’t get it just right the ends came out like straight daggers from each curl. There was no help for this disaster. A girls biggest nightmare was her hair not “doing right” for a big date. And yes…..this was before hair spray.

LeEtta and I were picture perfect by the time the boys arrived. We didn’t dare sit down for fear we would wrinkle our dresses so we stood or walked around the house until time to leave. Excitement and anticipation ruled. When our dates knocked at the door we were presented with the customary corsage…..only this corsage was not customary. We were each given an orchid. At our young ages we knew this was very special….on one ever got an orchid. Corsage’s were usually carnations that had been dyed to match or enhance the dress.

Since our dates declined pinning the corsage LeEtta’s mother pinned them on for us. With that we left the house and my date drove us to the prom. The gym was beautifully decorated and a record player was playing the latest Tommy Dorsey or Glen Miller music. The girls were bedecked in every color of formals and looked like a bouquet spread over the gym floor. Hearts were light and happy…..friendships were formed that would last a lifetime and laughter prevailed throughout the evening. We were about to be cast in every direction after graduation so that night was a celebration of life, youth and the future.

It would live on the rest of our lives……..

Until tomorrow,

Essentially Esther