Martha’s problem: What is the ‘better part’?

Framed by our kitchen window, a little brown house sparrow flits from one rhododendron branch to another. She looks nervous, fluttering and zipping from here to there, there to here—never pausing in one place for more than a second or two.

I can relate. My husband and I are having a dinner party tonight. The guests have all been invited, the house cleaned from top to bottom, the candles lit.

Cue the doorbell. Welcome the guests, take their coats and place them upstairs in the one perfectly manicured bedroom (keep the other doors closed!). Come down the stairs (smile!), make sure everyone has a drink, check the food, look relaxed. Invite everyone to the table, describe the menu, bring out the food, take a bite or two—slip back into the kitchen, assemble dessert.