Spying on Dignity

          The house looked like the Coliseum to me—the Coliseum with a huge, green lawn in front.  The house was mammoth—much larger than it appeared from the highway.  But now that I was there, walking up the white driveway, I could hardly believe my eyes.

            And there they were: beautiful women clad in shimmery evening gowns, gentlemen in tuxedos, sipping champagne.  A mini orchestra swayed the dancers like a breeze on a field of tall grass.

            I hung back in the trees, watching the people on the patio.  They were like shadows, slitting before my eyes and blending into a unified mass of wealth.  Gold, glitz, and glamour… it was all here, and it made my heart pound just to be so near it.  There was a difference between the society column in the newspaper and the real-life party on the patio of the Great House.

            Now I had seen it.  Now I was done.  I slid away into the park, leaving the aristocracy to itself.