Seniors dress up for prom at home

PHOTO: Senior Maya Alexander decided to take pictures in her prom outfit and post them to Instagram in lieu of having an in-person dance.

By Renee Xiang,

BlueDevilHUB.com Staff–

Each year, prom dresses hanging in seniors’ closets sparkle at the prospect of the big end-of-the-year dance. This year, however, they are only a reminder of what should have been. 

Senior Maya Alexander had been looking forward to the events most anticipated by any high school student long before she reached senior year. 

“You just dream about this as a little kid […] going to prom and having your senior year graduation, so much is leading up to it, and then all of a sudden, we don’t get that. It really sucks, but you just gotta move on because there’s not really much you can do,” she said. 

Graduating students everywhere shared the same feeling of disappointment at not getting their final school dance, and several began to turn to social media as an alternative. 

On Instagram, people have been adapting to social distancing guidelines with a new trend called “FaceTime photoshoots.” Senior Emily Cao decided to hop on the trend and have her own personal prom photoshoot from home. 

“I had gotten a dress way before prom was canceled, and I didn’t really want it to go to waste […] I was talking to my friend about it, and we were like, ‘oh, what if we just dressed up?’ So I FaceTimed her and we took pictures,” Cao said. 

Both Alexander and her friend, senior Alice Ferrer, had the opportunity to attend prom last year as juniors, but the two agree that the event carries a special value just for seniors. 

“I just think it’s a very big moment or just a milestone in senior year that’s just fun to have,” Alexander said. “It’s something everyone talks about when you’re an adult, like ‘oh, I remember prom when I was your age’ and I won’t be able to tell my future children about going to prom or having a graduation because this year was so weird.”

Alexander and Ferrer decided to take photos together in their prom dresses after seeing several friends post about it on their own Instagram accounts.

“I think it’s something we’ve all been looking forward to doing, and it’s a fun time to all get dressed up […] and to be together before we leave,” Ferrer said. 

Although the end of this school year has been a letdown for many seniors, it has imparted an important lesson of appreciation in all students.

“It’s been hard to adjust and let go of so many things we thought we were gonna have, but I think it’s [taught] us that we shouldn’t take things for granted,” Cao said.