Two Southern Belles were chatting on the porch of a grand white-pillared mansion

This short story is a clever and humorous example of double standards and perspective bias. It illustrates how people can interpret the same situation in two entirely different ways—depending on whom it involves.

The first part features two women exchanging polite but subtly competitive banter. One proudly lists the luxurious gifts her husband gave her with each child: a mansion, a Cadillac, and a diamond bracelet. The second woman repeatedly responds with the same neutral phrase, “Well, isn’t that nice?”—a classic, passive-aggressive line often used to mask disapproval or judgment while remaining polite.

The twist comes when they discuss their children’s marriages. The mother views her son’s wife as lazy and spoiled for being pampered—sleeping in, reading all day, and receiving breakfast in bed. Yet she describes her daughter’s identical lifestyle as proof that her daughter married an angel.

The humor lies in the irony: two identical behaviors are judged entirely differently based on whether it’s the son serving the wife or the daughter being served. This highlights how people often apply double standards without realizing it—especially when personal biases, like parental protectiveness, come into play.

In short, the story subtly critiques how perception is shaped by relationships and expectations, wrapped in light conversational humor.