I turned down main street while walking to art class. In front of me was a crowd of teens. I peaked my head in different directions and sighed once I figured out what was going on; another dumb promposal.

Every year I see the same old promposals in the halls of West Ottawa, and I am tired of it. If promposals are going to be a thing, the least people can do is make them stand out from others. They need to be sweet, yet memorable enough to impel others to follow. Here are four promposals that stand out from the social norm.

Poems and Letters

Create a haiku, a sonnet, a simple poem, or even an entire love letter. Promposals need something other than a sign to make them stand out. The poems do not have to be as good as Shakespeare’s, but they should stand out from cheesy pickup lines.

If poems are not a strong suit, do not worry. A letter is a great substitute for a poem, as it can either consist of pure love for someone or simply be a few sentences explaining why attending prom with that person would be fun. The gesture is both uncommon and sweet; a well-written poem could set the new standard for promposals.

Playlists

   If words of affirmation are hard to put together, create a playlist. Find music with titles of singular words to form a sentence. For example, in this order, use “go” by Cat Burns, “To” by the Neighborhood, “Prom” by SZA, “With me” by De La Soul, and “?” by Outkast to spell out “go to prom with me?” Not only will that person have a new playlist, but they will also have a date to prom.

A playlist composed of love songs is just as sweet. It would be wise to add songs that the individual likes to decrease the chances of rejection.

Food

Although food is becoming a more known promposal, the idea is brilliant. A lot of effort would be needed to mess up a pizza proposal. How can someone say no to “Will you go to prom with me?” spelled out in pizza toppings? If the gesture happens to take a wrong turn, simply scramble the toppings and eat the pizza alone.

Baked goods will work well, too. Instead of writing cheesy prom pick up lines on a poster board, write them on cakes and cookies. Although the pickup line aspect remains basic and boring, the cuisine brings sparks to the table. Plus, who can say no to food?

Big Statement 

Go big or go home; contact WOBN and propose the idea of asking someone to prom on morning announcements. Not only is the proposal free, but it could save people from being anxious, as they will not have to worry about being jittery when asking the question.

The only downside is that a majority of West Ottawa will see the promposal. It will not be private, and is guaranteed to be gossiped about in the halls.

No matter which route is taken, make the promposal special. Sooner rather than later, high school will be over, and everyone will be on a different path. Right now, there is an excuse to be cute and cheesy; take advantage of that. Cherish the immaturity of school dances and promposals before time is out.