3/3/19

Her long gown swished elegantly against the soft evening light as she sauntered inside the school expectantly.  Sweetheart, held on March second at Farmington High School, (Dr. Seuss’s birthday), is an annual dance celebrating the coming of spring and fun.  It took place in the old gym at six thirty in the evening with the coronation just before at six. The theme was Starry Night. A day beforehand, the annual FHS talent show located at Truman Auditorium at seven in the evening took place.  All of these celebrations were simply a superb way to honor soon-to-come springtime, say goodbye to a harsh winter, spend time with friends, and–no pun intended–sweethearts.
McKennah Wallace, a freshman, gave her piece about Sweetheart a few days before it took place.
“What is your position in Student Council?”
“I am a representative for Student Council.”
“What all goes into preparing for the Sweetheart dance?”
“For the dance we spend time during seminar discussing and creating the decorations for the dance. Every Monday we go in and discuss dates, reminders, and planned events evolving around Sweetheart. Saturday morning we will go in and start setting up decorations for the dance.”
“Why do you think people enjoy Sweetheart so much?”
“I think that people enjoy Sweetheart because it is fun spending time with a whole bunch of friends and new people. Everyone has a great time and isn’t shy when dancing. It really is like a party.”
“What was or is your favorite part about Sweetheart?”
“My favorite part is the music, there are always some good tunes going on. The dancing part is way more fun when you are with friends and listening to songs that make you happy.”
The FHS 2019 Sweetheart Talent Show surprisingly ended up being on March first this year instead of February twenty eighth due to unfavorable winter weather.  The spring-fling more or less reverted to a winter rescheduling! As for the Sweetheart dance, it still took place on March second as planned, despite the ironic residue of snow on the ground during a springtime celebration.  The time for the dance was moved up thirty minutes to six thirty instead of seven due to foreboding weather. Therefore, the original coronation taking place at six thirty was moved up to six.
At six o’clock on March the second, a large crowd gathered in the new gym with high anticipation of who would be the winner of the talent show that took place the night beforehand.  There were a total of seventeen contestants. All of the contestants were girls (with the help of optional partners), that were nominated from different clubs which were to “compete” against the other nominees to be crowned Sweetheart Queen.  Judges were at the performance to evaluate each of the acts. Furthermore, each candidate was previously interviewed, which was also part of the evaluation. Many wonderful talents were displayed at the show, such as painting, singing, instrument playing, skit-acting, lip-syncing, dancing, and magic tricking, to name a few.  It was difficult to guess who would be the ultimate champion, and who would honored with second and third place.
As it turned out, Ann Raymer had the third best act in the show with her four mallet marimba solo called “Dance of the Witches”.  Raymer was representing Future Business Leaders of America.
Second best was Aleasia Ryan with a painting act including some of her friends.  The paintings that both Ryan and her helpers created puzzle-pieced together to form a heart.  Ryan was representing Health Occupational Students of America.
The Queen of the Sweetheart Talent Show was Anna Hansen, a year-long exchange student from Denmark who performed an act where she sang several songs in varying languages, ending with a well-known song in English.  She altered some of the lyrics in the final song so that it was based in Farmington, Missouri, making a hilarious parody. Hansen was representing World Café.
Shortly afterward, the crowd began to file out to the old gym where the dance was being held.  Although the night was freezing and windy, that didn’t stop anybody from having a blast! As soon as one walked through the entry doors, warmth and fun was everywhere.  If anyone was thirsty or hungry, concessions were going on to quench any of those needs. Jackets, phones, and even shoes were shed to the sidelines as students crowded into the building.  The gym was dim and loud, and any worries were lost in the presence of people and friends.
In closing, Sweetheart and the astounding talent show was certainly successful, and no late-winter weather could stop FHS students from having a great time.  Hope of spring may be on the horizon, but fun friends and special sweethearts are already here.