Free The Price of Beauty in Strawberry Land by Gerald W. Darnell Page B

‘in heat’ - with the male bees constantly circling.   She was sitting in a corner next to the open patio doors – just where people traffic would be the heaviest.   Men would stop, talk, shake hands then walk off – only to return again a minute or two later.   She seemed to greet each one with the same grace and charm – I doubt if she knew any of them – or cared, but she certainly had their attention.
    As I got closer, I understood the reason for the activity.
    It is difficult to define beauty.   While everyone recognizes it, they seem to have their own definition of what beauty is.   Those are personal definitions from the individual - and if you analyze them – they are all the same.   I challenge that this lady could be the sum total of all those definitions.
    She was modestly dressed, when compared to most other women at the party.   That was a message in itself – regardless of what she wore, her beauty overshadowed everything.   Flowing blonde hair, flawless features, skin, and lips that glowed with just the right tone – along with the ability to carry all these in the proper manner.
    Unlike what you expect from most women, I never heard her speak.   She would just nod, bow and shake hands. While her voice probably matched what you saw, she was smart enough to understand that words were not important – she wanted them to look at her – not engage in a conversation.
    I didn’t know this woman – and I didn’t want to know her.   My professional instinct told me that the further away I was from this woman, the safer I would be.   Unfortunately, I, like many others, was simply overwhelmed with the beauty and I stared rudely   – enjoying the flavor to my eyes.
    Arms around my waist and an ear nibble brought me back from paradise – it was Liz.
    Embarrassed by my staring at this lady, I tried to cover up quickly. “Hey beautiful, I’m trying to pick up a woman – you got any suggestions?”
    She gave me a wet kiss and said, “Well Mr. Reno – looks like you have already made your choice.   Do I still stand a chance?”
    “Just looking at the candy – I haven’t unwrapped anything yet.”
    “Close your mouth Carson – that is one piece of candy you don’t want to unwrap – trust me.”
    I believed her.
    We made it to the bar, had a real drink and then a slow dance to the music from the pool band.   It was comfortable to have Liz here – I felt much better.
    The next excitement was the arrival of Phillip Chaney.   He, evidently, was the rich boyfriend of Charlotte Luckey and his plane had just landed.   Announcement was made that he would join everyone, including Charlotte, at the Club reception.
    Eventually, we linked with Jack and Judy to make our golf cart trip over to the Country Club.   If you can imagine, it was even crazier at the Club.   The downstairs bar was overwhelmed, and the only solution was to find our assigned table and begin our drinking operations from there.
    Our table was a good one, not too close to the band and not too close to the dance floor.   Dinner was served quickly and Charlie Rich provided us with a few tunes before Mary Ellen delivered her formal welcome and birthday wishes to her son.
    It seems that then we were on our own – left to our own devices.   And using her devices, Liz had a lot of social networking to get accomplished.   She quickly left the table to make her   ‘rounds’. That left Judy, Jack and I to catch up and spend most of the evening discussing other guests.
    Judy told me that the attendance guest list was open. That meant key people were able to invite guests of their choosing.   I was still looking for Mr. Knuchols – he was probably in the downstairs bar.
    The ‘beauty’ I had spotted earlier at Mary Ellen’s was dancing with a very handsome young man – who I assumed to be Phillip Chaney. They made a lovely couple and I asked Judy what she knew about our ‘beauty’ and her escort.
    “Is this a personal