When my school announced prom, I wasn’t exactly excited. I wasn’t dating anyone, and honestly, the whole thing felt kind of overrated. But then I looked over at my great-grandma, Alma, sitting in her recliner, watching some old black-and-white movie. She laughed. “Honey, back in my day, girls like me didn’t get asked to prom.” That stuck with me. She’d been through a lot—raising four kids, losing my great-grandpa way too young, and still managing to be the funniest, toughest woman I knew.

So, I made up my mind right then and there. I was taking my great-grandma to prom. At first, she thought I was joking. “What would I even wear?” she asked, raising an eyebrow. Something fabulous,” I told her. A week later, she had a sparkly blue dress, and I had a matching tie. When we walked into the venue, all eyes were on us.

I expected a few weird looks, maybe some whispers. Instead, people started clapping. My friends cheered. Even the principal wiped a tear. And then? Alma hit the dance floor. I mean, really hit the dance floor. She twirled, she laughed, she even did a little shimmy to a Bruno Mars song. But the best part?

Halfway through the night, the DJ grabbed the mic and made an announcement that the next song was dedicated to the “Queen of the Prom,” and it was none other than Alma herself! Everyone erupted into applause, and Alma was beaming with joy. As the music began to play, it was an old favorite that my great-grandma had mentioned before, from when she was young. The familiar tune of “Always” by Ella Fitzgerald filled the room, and suddenly, Alma’s eyes sparkled even more brightly.

“Want to tell me about it?” I asked, curious about the song’s significance. “Ah,” she sighed happily. “This was my song with your great-grandpa. We used to dance to it in our living room.”