MAMA'S GOT THE 'FIRST HOMECOMING' BLUES

Tonight is the night I worried about the minute my son was born 14 1/2 years ago...

It's the night of his first high school dance...Homecoming 2007...

Wait just a minute as I pour the tears out of his baby shoes...there...(sob, sob) now, where was I?

Oh, yes...DJ's first Homecoming dance...my God, where have the years gone?

He looked very handsome, all dressed up, a boutenere and all...it wasn't until we pulled into his date's driveway, however, and he escorted her to the car and opened the door for her that I felt the lump in my throat.

(Or was it her little STRAPLESS black dress -- yiiiiiiikes -- that brought tears to my eyes and protective mother cat claws to my fingertips?)

She's a lovely girl, and she looked absoultely stunning, even tho I was sooo tempted to offer her a turtle neck winter coat to combat the slight chill in the early fall evening air...

I kept my composure until after they had started walking toward the school door, fairly well beyond earshot...at least a half a foot...and then the tears burst forth.

"Oh, my God, my baby!" I sobbed.

John just kept on driving. Fast.

When I got home, I gathered up DJ's baby shoes, his football, and his kindergarten picture, placed them on the kitchen table...nudged my hubby, pointed at the makeshift DJ shrine, and just sobbed some more...

I toyed with the idea of grabbing my husband's night vision goggles and dashing up to the school to sneak a peek, to secretly peer into the high school commons just to see how things were going...

Was it to late to volunteer as a chaperone?

Well, my golly, look at the time...

Here it is 10:01 already...only 59 minutes to go until we pick up DJ and his date (omigod, his DATE) and take them to a little after-dance party up the street...

Did I just type "after-dance party"?

Omigod.

Where are those damn night vision goggles?

Stay tuned.