Measuring the Success of a Party

Have you ever wondered, "What if I threw a party and no one came?" If you know the answer to that, you're a member of my family.

It all started when I was little, and my mother hosted a gathering for people from our church. I must have stood by the living room window for half an hour, saying, "Here comes a car. Nope, it went on by. Here comes another. Hey, it's slowing down! Nope, it went on by." Of all people, you'd think church members would be considerate enough either to show up or to extend their regrets.

I was never very social, but I thought that turning 18 and graduating high school within a fortnight was momentous, so I wanted a party. I invited 52 fellow students, mostly from the music department. I remember that number distinctly because it's the same as a deck of cards without the jokers. Only 13 came (not sure if they were hearts, spades, clubs, diamonds, or a mixture).

When my brother bought his place, he threw an open house. Appropriately enough, he invited the same number of friends as I did -- and had the same number of guests.

After I bought my condo, I, too, threw a housewarming. Again, only a quarter of my invitees arrived. By this time, I thought my family was cursed. Never could we host a successful party.

Last Halloween, my paradigm changed. (That theme seems to surface in this blog every so often.) Sure, only a quarter (as usual) of my guest list showed up, but they were having a good time. They were chatting, eating, drinking, moving around.... Heck, even I was moving around and mixing with the guests! After everyone went home, and I was sitting on the sofa, trying to catch my breath, I finally realized that it's not the number of guests (nor the percentage) that makes a party successful, it's what goes on during the event and if everyone has a good time.

Sounds nice, doesn't it? Too bad no one showed up for the party I hosted last night....