Today marks the anniversary of one of the biggest disappointments of my life, if not the biggest one. Thirty-two years ago would have been my senior prom, which I didn't attend because there was essentially no one for me to invite.
At the time, it seemed that things were conspiring against me -- for a number of reasons I wasn't terribly popular with girls either at my school or in the immediate neighborhood and in fact didn't even have any casual female friends. Further, my dad never encouraged me to learn how to drive a car, so "importing" someone wasn't an option, either. It didn't matter that my closest friends at the time didn't go either. (And while I don't want to make a one-to-one comparison, I believe that my situation then is at least indirectly connected to why I'm still single today.)
I was a new Christian at the time, however; even then I knew that I was never guaranteed an easy life and wouldn't get everything I wanted. We don't always get the job, the girl, the house in the 'burbs -- in short, following Jesus may, and almost always does, mean sacrificing something, even cherished ambitions.
I'm reminded too that others have suffered as well, though perhaps not in the same way. When a formerly close long-distance friend, whom I did date at one point, came to visit we made it a point to get dressed up for an evening out, my wearing a tux. You see, six years after I graduated from high school, her prom date stood her up.
So perhaps its a good thing that we have some pain -- so that we can understand what others experience.
At the time, it seemed that things were conspiring against me -- for a number of reasons I wasn't terribly popular with girls either at my school or in the immediate neighborhood and in fact didn't even have any casual female friends. Further, my dad never encouraged me to learn how to drive a car, so "importing" someone wasn't an option, either. It didn't matter that my closest friends at the time didn't go either. (And while I don't want to make a one-to-one comparison, I believe that my situation then is at least indirectly connected to why I'm still single today.)
I was a new Christian at the time, however; even then I knew that I was never guaranteed an easy life and wouldn't get everything I wanted. We don't always get the job, the girl, the house in the 'burbs -- in short, following Jesus may, and almost always does, mean sacrificing something, even cherished ambitions.
I'm reminded too that others have suffered as well, though perhaps not in the same way. When a formerly close long-distance friend, whom I did date at one point, came to visit we made it a point to get dressed up for an evening out, my wearing a tux. You see, six years after I graduated from high school, her prom date stood her up.
So perhaps its a good thing that we have some pain -- so that we can understand what others experience.
1 comment:
I wasn't allowed to go to proms or any other dances. We were old Christians and knew dancing led to sex in the back of Chevys.
This wasn't my biggest regret. I have a million since then. In fact I spent way too much on my daughter's prom dress, trying to insure my childhood wasn't repeated.
I've spent way too much time living in my head and in my past to enjoy my today. That is my biggest regret.
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