At a Vanderbilt Mansion

At a Vanderbilt mansion,*

Two bathrooms surprised,

With features too modern

For me to’ve surmised.

In the owner’s own shower,

One handle controlled

A foot-facing faucet;

If too hot or cold,

You adjusted the temp

‘Til you felt the right heat

Before water would hit you,

Just touching your feet.

Only then, when correct,

Did you turn on the taps.

Maybe otherwise, those 

Really rich would collapse.

In his wife’s room, a scale

In the floor tiles was sending

Her weight at eye level,

Preventing her bending.

These accoutrements really

Allowed me to see

That the rich are quite different

From you and from me.

*William K. Vanderbilt’s mansion,

built between 1910 and 1936.