Living as we do half in suburbia and half in exurbia, we no longer encounter masses of people. The rule has been broken twice in the past month, once in December at the Cutler Majestic Theater in downtown Boston to attend Celtic Christmas Sojourn, and once yesterday to see the Dutch art exhibit at the MFA in Boston. I was delighted to find that hundreds of people crowded in small spaces can still behave most decorously and politely. The music and the art could be appreciated!
Well, almost. At the concert, a small boy a few rows behind us discussed his needs and wants quite loudly, and his parents did little about it until well after the intermission. At the MFA, a pair of older women gossiped about mutual acquaintances for several minutes, which may have been fine in the middle of the gallery, but not standing directly in front of a Vermeer. No amount of close approaches and craning of necks seemed to penetrate the discussion. People! There are only 35 of these in the whole world! Surely you can put aside the cares of Weston for a few minutes and think of the stars.
