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 vocation.
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 having 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
the things you have that money can't buy. "Today is a
gift, that's why it is called the present."