Summer Mist

The time pressure and effort put into my quinceañera took more than half a year to plan. How far away it seemed to be from choosing who was going to be in court, the songs I would dance to, my hair for pictures, and choosing my dress. Choosing my dress was hard at first, but it came to be easy once I saw it on. My family from far away started arriving a week earlier to be at my party. The house was packed with people. My aunts, uncles, and cousins from both sides of my family. So many people helped me prepare for the day. Everyone was excited to see how my party would turn out. 

Until there was just a day left. We did the last rehearsal of my dances and my entrance. I went to sleep excited to wake up early and get my makeup and hair done. I felt so pampered. I put on my red and sparkly dress with little flower accents. I couldn’t wait to wear it for the real celebration, not just for practice. My chambelans started arriving at my house after getting my hair done. The house was in chaos, everyone rushing to get ready, and the photographer and videographer arrived. We took the final pictures at the park and arrived at the salon. Everything was party-ready; guests started to arrive, I said “Hi” and thanked them for coming. Everything was blissful and joyful. 

There was a heavy rain forecast. You could still hear the thunder and rattle of the rainfall passing through the beats of the music. Guests who arrived at that time, soaked by the wet weather, dried right off as soon as entering the party. My friends and family complimented me and my dress. The dance floor started to get full. My chambelanes and family started to take me out to the dance floor. Water slowly started to drip from the ceiling onto the dance floor. It felt like a relief to feel the cold drops, which helped to cool down guests from the heat of dancing. My mom and sister looked as if the air was heavy with dread. They stressed and worried about things compared to my dad and me. My dad and I are similar in that way. They were running around trying to clean up the mess so people wouldn’t slip, and all the waiters helped to clean and keep the party seamless.

 Eventually, the water got cleaned up just in time for me and my court to dance. We made our entrance, all with a bit of raindrops on us. As we danced, we washed away the raindrops with each movement together. Everything went perfectly, each carry was perfect. Water started to drip again, but they no longer bothered us since we practiced so hard for this; nothing could stop us. All we paid attention to was the music and our coordination. The water just made us feel as if we were floating together. The last big carry, I sat in the chair, especially built for me by my dad. They lifted me up on their shoulder and carried me around the dance floor. Rain poured through the ceiling cracks. It didn’t feel like a disaster, but almost as if each drop fell with confidence. The water droplets sprinkled as if they were congratulating us for the performance. My dress swirled with the same joy as I felt when I first tried it on. All I could hear was the music, raindrops, and the applause of my family and friends.

They put me down on the ground to receive my heels. My sister took off my sneaker and strapped the heel on me like she would when we shared a room together. There was a mist around us that was like a sweet sorrow. Afterwards, I did my mom and dad dance. The rain was pouring through the salon windows, trickling to the ground first, surrounding the guests and later surrounding us on the dance floor. The lights flickered in the room. Until they finally turned off because of the water saturation.

But that didn’t stop anybody from continuing the party. When the power went out, it didn’t turn dark; instead, the centerpieces flickered through the salon with fairy lights, blooming the room into a forest meadow with fireflies that made my glittery dress shimmer. The live band started playing. My dress was soaked, but it didn’t matter; it was what made me forget all the troubles during the party. It was red, with flowers and glitter. The glitter twinkled throughout the night. The puddles of water formed a glassy lake. The fresh rain air smelled like fresh wet grass. Nothing was negatively affected; it helped my party be My party. In time, the party came to an end. My close family helped to clean up everything until all that was left was to reclaim the floor from the summer rain. The day was very long, my feet were sore, and I was swept away from the water onto the ground in the hot summer night.