Once upon a time, the hardest part of asking someone to a dance was building up the courage to go ask that special person that you like, but now asking is so much easier because it no longer requires any courage. Writing a pun on a poster and buying some candy is effortless compared to the stress of exerting enough boldness to ask someone to the dance.

Asking people in person has somehow become an anomaly at Bingham, and even in Utah as a whole. Students used to only use posters and ding-dong-ditching for asking their significant other, or their best friend. This was partially to keep the dances interesting when you go with the same person more than once. This was also because that person already knew that you were going to ask them, so you would use something creative to surprise them. My friends and I, when I lived in Billings, Montana, would never dream of not asking a girl to a dance face-to-face. We still think the lack of personal interaction is crazy. They believe, like I do, that to ask someone who you don’t know very well, you need to see their face and ask them right then and there.

Utah has a tradition of dreaming up the most elaborate ways to ask someone to a dance. People do anything from leaving a poster on their friend’s doorstep to having week-long scavenger hunts just to reveal to a stranger who the person is that asked them. Joseph Hendricks, a junior at Bingham, doesn’t like how crazy the asks can get. He prefers simpler things, like clever posters, because they are still just as fun and less of a hassle. Hendricks said, “It is easier to ask someone who you don’t know very well if you use a poster.”

Just leaving a poster on someone’s doorstep eliminates the nerves of walking up to a pretty girl and confronting them in person. Jillian Jarvis, a senior and the SBO of Activities at Bingham High School, agrees. Jarvis said, “I think it would be harder to ask in person because you would have to confront the person.” But confrontation is the best way to ensure that the dance will be a good one. How are you expected to take someone out on a date if you can’t build up the courage to ask them on that date face-to-face?

Some people do find the fanciness of the asks fun. Jarvis said, “I love how extravagant they [the asks)] can get. It really represents Utah’s uniqueness and creativity.” The extravagant asks do make Utah unique; in most other states, you just walk up to someone, maybe bring some flowers, and ask them on a date to the dance. Jarvis said that dances aren’t like any normal date, so asking in person just won’t do. The more extravagant the ask, the better.

The problem with not asking in person is you don’t get to see the person’s face light up when you ask them. All of the practicing in the mirror and building up courage becomes so worth it when you finally ask the person and see their face brighten and they reply, yes. Next time you ask someone to the dance, try asking them in person; you won’t regret it.