It is finally springtime. Final project deadlines and the responsibility of finishing (starting) final papers are looming over the heads of high school students as warmer weather approaches. Spring fever sets in and the countdown to the freedom of summer days dwindles down to a total that is less than a month. What is also on the minds of high school students during this busy time of year is prom. The anticipation for prom is overrated, and the time and effort that go into planning, executing, or even simply attending the event ultimately only conjure unnecessary stress.

I skipped my senior prom, and my decision to do so was really no big deal.

Now, I attended five previous dances during my high school career. I enjoyed the idea of getting my hair and makeup done, picking out a perfect dress, coordinating with a date or group of friends, taking pictures with everyone looking beautiful, making dinner plans, and spending the evening dancing and listening to music. However, events very rarely play out how you image them in your mind. The school dances that I did attend were fun, yet all of the stress that was part of the preparation process was honestly worthless. What is the point of going to great extents merely for a high school dance?

Today's society places an overemphasized importance on this idea that homecoming, winter formal, and prom all have to be extravagant events. And while it is fun to have a special evening every once in a while, it is also imperative to keep in mind that this is a high school dance, not your wedding day.

Your decision to attend a school dance does not dictate how memorable your high school career will end up being. My point is, school dances are not as big of a deal as students tend to make them. You can still have a social and memorable year even if you don't attend the dance.

I had a dress hanging in my closet, altered and ready to be worn on prom night, since I originally intended to go because I had this notion of, "You can't miss your senior prom; it's your last school dance ever!" pounded into my head. However, the more I thought about it, what would be so bad if I did not go to prom? I wasn't so concerned with "fear of missing out" because I knew from previous experiences that there actually was not much for me to miss out on. I was more concerned with the questions and judgments that had the potential to arise from my decision to not attend prom.

At that moment, I realized that I should not hold myself back from choosing to do what was best for me simply because I was nervous how other people would react to my decision. High school is an especially awkward time when people are guided by this idea that they must do things because that's the way things have always been done, or they have to do things because everyone else is doing them and being an outlier has a negative connotation.

Understanding that you cannot allow the judgments of other people dictate how you make choices is very valuable and applicable to all aspects of life, far beyond the realm of high school. As long as you are content with your decision, then go ahead and pursue that choice. It doesn't matter how other people are going to react; you can't please everyone all of the time. What's most important is that you are content with the personal decision to that you have chosen to make.

In conclusion, I found it a bigger deal thinking about not going to senior prom than it was actually skipping the event. There are lots of reasons to attend a formal school dance; they can be fun! On the other hand, there are just as many reasons not to attend, even though deciding not to go is generally not the choice that is made. As a result, I realized that it is perfectly okay to be different in comparison to what seems to be the choice of everybody else.