The Window
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 and
where they had been on vacation.
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 life would be broadened and enlivened by all the activity and color
of the world outside.
The window overlooked a park with a
gazebo. Ducks and swans played
on the water while children sailed their model boats. Grand
old trees graced the landscape, and a fine view of the city skyline
could be seen in the distance. Lovely trees were slowing floating to the
ground from the trees. 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 scene.
Days 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 him 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."
There is tremendous happiness in making others happy, despite our own
situations. Shared grief is half the sorrow, but happiness when shared,
is doubled.
