Silver Arrow dance a golden experience

Recently Jackson held the Silver Arrow dance, a long-standing tradition in the school and my first formal. Sure, at the junior high we had semiformals, but that was a semiformal not a formal. It's hard to think that a little prefix can make such a big difference.

At formal dances, girls are generally expected to wear floor-length dresses. Unfortunately, most stores don't stock formals in early November, so I had to do a bit of hunting to find a dress. After talking to my friends and shopping for hours, I finally found a dress I liked.

I'm on the Jackson High School newspaper staff, and I'd been assigned to write an article about Silver Arrow.

I arrived in time to see the crowning ceremony at 7:30 p.m. -- the dance officially started at 8 and ended at 11. After attending the crowning ceremony, I understood why participants had practiced it several times. The ceremony didn't just announce who became queen and "big chief" out of the 10 members of the Silver Arrow court. Students also performed dances and songs. It was quite interesting.

After the crowning ceremony, I scurried around getting interviews from people on the court, people who worked on the backdrop and decorations, and other students attending the dance. This is where I'm sure my first formal dance experience differs from others, but it was still a good one.

After I thought I had enough interviews, I actually went into the dance. When I walked in, I noticed the music blaring, the decorations sparkling and people dancing and talking. I immediately tracked down my group of friends and kicked off my shoes into the pile they had already formed. It always amazes me how girls stress about what shoes to wear, and then only wear them for the first few minutes of a dance.

I'm not good at dancing. But I don't think you have to be good at something to enjoy doing it, so I danced. My friends and I danced, talked, laughed and joked through the dance, and seeing as we go crazy at dances, we were saddened as the last song ended and the lights lit up, signaling the time for us to go home.

Based upon my first formal dance experience at Silver Arrow, despite the hours spent dress hunting, the way my feet hurt the next day, and the scrambling around talking to people I've never met to interview them for the school paper, I've decided that I can't wait for the next one.

Carlie Cattron is a sophomore trying to find her way through the halls of Jackson High School and documenting it in a monthly column.