Cupid’s Ball, the best night of the year for all Clayton girls under the age of 12, is finally upon us.  Aptly positioned for the week of Valentine’s Day, many lucky ladies have the opportunity to accompany their fathers or grandfathers to the fanciest party of their young lives.

Peppers, CHS’ winter dance, took place February 8.  The dances for the youngest and oldest members of the district coincidentally fell within days of one another.

I am left with many fond memories of attending Cupid’s Ball with my dad.  For many girls, its the first time they go to the Ritz Carlton or don a corsage.  For me, Cupid’s Ball was the night that I could stay up past 8 pm on a school night.

I remember picking out my dress weeks before the dance, sitting with hot rollers in my hair for what seemed like hours and getting to borrow my mom’s expensive perfume.  Most of all, I remember the embarrassing, outdated moves my dad pulled out on the dance floor, laughing at him until my sides hurt and not caring who saw me imitating him.

Now, in the years of high school dances, the excitement of a chance to get dressed up remains, although the context has changed slightly.  Princess dresses and kitten heels have been traded for skintight minidresses and 6 inch pumps, Shirley Temple curls and a swipe of lipstick swapped for hours in front of manicurists, hair stylists and makeup counters.

While the means of preparing ourselves for dances have grown with our age, Cupid’s Ball and Peppers both grant us the same simple joys that shape our childhood, moments that will become our favorite stories to tell our kids years from now.

Cupid’s Ball and Peppers alike send the same messages to youth of all ages, messages that can get lost in the superficiality of the dances.  Dances teach us the importance of self confidence, the power in dancing stress away and the value in enjoying youth while we can.