Homecoming season is just so much fun.

It was all kicked off with the unveiling of the homecoming theme. Everybody was out in the quad waiting – not so patiently – for the big reveal. The dramatic music started playing and several people arrived dressed in white, carrying a large poster. What would the theme be? A Night for the Gods was written on a long banner. So Greek gods and goddesses it was!

After the revealing, it was time to make posters for decoration. HUGE canvases were laid out across the floor of the cafeteria and our ASB started their work. Each grade had their own god to represent them: Hermes for freshman, Poseidon for sophomores, Apollo for juniors and…of course…Zeus for seniors. Large-scale gods were sketched and painted for the big homecoming rally.

After all the preparation came the start of the homecoming weekend. Friday was the big HOCO rally. The MC was the one and only Mr. Bishop. He started by introducing each of the gods, which were played by various teachers. My favorite intro was, “Apollo, the god of life and chicken!” Get it?  A-pollo?  Pretty loco, right?  Then Mr. Wilborn, Rancho’s energetic principal, ran out in a toga dressed like Zeus. The rally continued with several dances. The varsity dance team led by performing an incredible dance. They were followed by the Rancho alumni teachers. Their dance was fun and upbeat making the dancing teachers stand out in the midst of the rest. Next was the JV dance team acting out a picture of good vs. evil. To top off the dancing was the Homecoming court dance. The candidates for homecoming queen all walked out with a fun dance with their people of choice, and then joined together to perform an entertaining dance. The rally was concluded by the almost-crowning of the queen. Overall, the event was SUPER fun and as a freshman, I’m looking forward to more rallies.

Next was the Homecoming game on Friday night. Rancho vs. Don Lugo, who would win? Most of the students were excited for the big HOCO game. The Rancho Rooters, the “cheerleaders” in the student section began arriving more than two hours before the game to get their cheers and chants together. When the game started, Rancho was immediately in the lead. We were winning by a pretty big margin, when halftime hit. The big halftime show was what most were looking forward to. It began with the homecoming court coming out in fancy dresses riding in the back of REALLY nice cars. Each girl had her own goals and personality quirks shared over the speaker. Then, it was the ASB senators’ time to dance. I am part of the freshmen senators’ class, so we had to perform a fun little stomp chant and dance for the students. It was a ton of fun to perform and watch the other three classes dance too.

After the dances, was the moment everyone was waiting for: the unveiling of the homecoming queen. Mr. Bishop, dressed in a toga, ran back and forth between the candidates holding a giant lightning bolt.  Who would win? Finally, the queen was crowned and she actually fell off her little platform in excitement and shock (Don’t worry, she was okay after the initial surprise). In celebration, fireworks were lit and everyone cheered. The game resumed and the final score was 49-7, Rancho had won their homecoming game of 2016.

Finally, it was time for the big event: the homecoming dance on Saturday night. Girls and guys started getting ready for a fun night. Girls wore fancy dresses and high heels, and guys dressed in suits and bow ties. Everyone who was going, seemed to be looking forward to it. People came in pairs, couples, or groups of friends. The East Quad was strung with lights and an oldies band playing all night, while the gym was set up with a DJ who played the top hits while colored lights flashed in the background. There was free candy, snow cones, cotton candy, popcorn, and more sugar. (I ate too much sugar, I can guarantee that!). I went with my friend Jenna, and we had a ton of fun dancing and laughing all night. It was a successful first HOCO for me!