Death was the first guest to arrive, followed closely by his good friends, Sadness, Anger, and Shock. Despair tried to sneak in behind them, but he was turned away at the door. There seemed to be some kind of problem with his ID or invitation, which was a relief to me, because he was horribly scary. Confusion arrived just a few minutes later with an entrance that sent the entire party into a tizzy! He must have turned up the volume on the speakers, because suddenly the noise level in the room became intense and overwhelming. I think someone said something about some kind of scam, it's just hearsay and we shouldn't believe it; it's all lies, one guest said, but I wasn't sure what they were talking about. The noise level was increasing, and my head was pounding. I found myself hoping and praying that this whole crazy party was just a horrible nightmare. . . surely I would wake up soon to my pleasant, quiet, dependable life. Please let me wake up soon, I begged!
But as the night wore on, the party seemed to escalate and I even noticed a few of the guests in a physical altercation in one of the back rooms. "Stop!", I finally shouted! "Didn't you read your invitations? They were printed with clear instructions to arrive at designated times specifically designed to prevent this ghastly revelry! Now, get out, get out!" There was just a brief moment of silence following my verbal outburst, then the laughter started. . .horrible, shrill, demeaning laughter. My legs buckled under me, and I fell to the floor, weeping.
Days, weeks, months passed. I lost all track of time. The guests were still there. But, as I walked through the house one morning, I began to notice new faces in the crowd, some with vaguely familiar features. Feeling somewhat adventurous, I started down a darkened hallway and heard a curious noise behind a closed door. This was still my house, and I had a right to know who was there, so I boldly pushed open the door and stared, unbelieving at the sight before me. Sunshine poured through the windows and Joy and Hope were laughing and dancing around the room. "Where did you come from? How long have you been here? What are you doing?" The questions poured out of me, but my guests just grabbed me by the hands and pulled me into their blissful waltz. Time seemed to slow as precious memories of happier days filled my head, but the calm repose didn't last long as voices from the hallway began shouting and sobbing once again. My time in the sunroom with these old friends had been so precious . . . I was desperate to grab a few more minutes with them, but other guests were once again demanding my attention.
Will this party ever end, I screamed out to no-one. And there was no answer.
