Protocol 2008

Have you ever watched a Jane Austen movie and just wished you could go to a ball and dance like the heroines of the story? Well, Geary and I got to do that Saturday night!

Veritas School has a yearly ball called Protocol. Students spend several weeks learning table manners, how to give toasts, proper introductions and things like that. They also get a few dancing lessons and then they get to celebrate at a big fancy party. Geary and I were invited this year and I'm excited for the next time we get to go. It was super fun and so much better than any prom story I've ever heard or experienced.

Protocol was held at a beautiful country club in Wilsonville. The boys all wore suits and looked very sharp. The girls were wearing ball gowns (me too!) and they looked stunning. No one was allowed to bring a date which seemed to take a ton of pressure off the students. They were all there to have a good time with their friends and teachers.

Dinner was served at tables with assigned seating and two students at each table were given the role of host and hostess. Our host was the guy on my left and the hostess was the girl in the red dress and they were excellent. They were responsible for introducing everyone at the table and for keeping the conversation going. I was very impressed with these teenagers. Since I didn't go to any of the Protocol lessons I paid very close attention to what the students were doing with their silverware and napkins. Hopefully I didn't commit any major etitquette mistakes.

During dinner each senior got toasted by a friend or sibling. Each student did a great job speaking clearly and for just the right amount of time. Here's our host giving a remarkable toast. We noticed that we had gotten into a kind of glass clinking pattern and by the end of dinner our table had gotten it down to a science. I believe our record was 5.4 seconds from the "Here's to..." to the sip.






After dinner the dancing starting and it was so fun! I loved that we were dancing real dances with real names instead of the lame "moves" that happened at my high school prom. The picture to the right is of "The Grand March."


I loved seeing boys and girls switching partners after each dance instead of the boys on one side of the room and girls on the other and a few couples draped all over each other. To the left is one of Geary's students dancing a waltz with her dad--so sweet!



I loved seeing freshmen and seniors having a great time laughing together. I loved the careful attention to detail, the polite manners, the respect and courtesy, everything! It was a lovely, lovely evening and I am so glad we get to be part of this community!