Two men, both seriously ill, occupied the same hospital room.
One man was allowed to sit up in his bed for an hour each afternoon
to help drain the fluid from his lungs. His bed was next to the room's only window.
The other man had to spend all his time flat on his back.
The men talked for hours on end. They spoke of their wives
and families, their homes, their jobs, their involvement in
the military service, where they had been on vacation.
And every afternoon when the man in the bed by the window could
sit up, he would pass the time by describing to his roommate all
the things he could see outside the window. The man in
the other bed began to live for those one-hour periods where
his world would be broadened and enlivened by all the activity and
color of the world outside. The window overlooked a park with
a lovely lake. Ducks and swans played on the water while
children sailed their model boats. Young lovers walked arm in
arm amidst flowers of every color of the rainbow. Grand old
trees graced the landscape, and a fine view of the city skyline could be seen in the distance.
As the man by the window described all this in exquisite detail,
the man on the other side of the room would close his eyes
and imagine the picturesque scene. One warm afternoon
the man by the window described a parade passing by.
Although the other man couldn't hear the band -
he could see it in his mind's eye as the gentleman by
the window portrayed it with descriptive words. Days and weeks passed.
One morning, the day nurse arrived to bring water
for their baths only to find the lifeless body of
the man by the window, who had died peacefully in his
sleep. She was saddened and called the hospital attendants
to take the body away. As soon as it seemed appropriate,
the other man asked if he could be moved next to
the window. The nurse was happy to make the switch, and after making sure he was comfortable, she left him alone.
Slowly, painfully, he propped himself up on one elbow to take
his first look at the world outside. Finally, he would have
the joy of seeing it for himself. He strained to slowly turn
to look out the window beside the bed. It faced a blank wall.
The man asked the nurse what could have compelled
his deceased roommate who had described such wonderful
things outside this window. The nurse responded that
the man was blind and could not even see the wall. She said, "Perhaps he just wanted to encourage you."
Epilogue. . . There is tremendous happiness in making others happy,
despite our own situations. Shared grief is half the sorrow,
but happiness when shared, is doubled. If you want
to feel rich, just count all of the things you have that money can't buy.
"Today is a gift, that's why it is called the present."
