THE HOSPITAL WINDOW
                                                                                                                            Author Unknown
 

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 room-mate 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 colour 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.

Then unexpectedly, a sinister thought entered his mind.  Why should the other
man alone experience all the pleasures  of seeing everything while he himself
never got to see anything?   It didn't seem fair.  At first thought the man
felt ashamed.  But as the days passed and he missed seeing more sights, his
envy eroded into resentment and soon turned him sour.

He began to brood and he found himself unable to sleep.  He should be by that
window--that thought, and only that thought now controlled his life.

Late one night as he lay staring at the ceiling, the man by the window began
to cough.  He was choking on the fluid in his lungs.  The other man watched in
the dimly lit room as the struggling  man by the window groped for the button
to call for help.  Listening from across the room he never moved, never pushed
his own button which would have brought the nurse running in.

In less than five minutes the coughing and choking stopped, along with that
the sound of breathing.  Now there was only silence--deathly silence.

The following morning the day nurse arrived to bring water for their
baths.  When she found the lifeless body of the man by the window, she was
saddened and called the hospital attendants to take it 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 all himself.
He strained to slowly turn to look out the window beside the bed.  It faced a
blank wall.

-------------------

Epilogue. . . .

You can interpret the story in any way you like. But one moral stands out:

     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.