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’d 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 colour of the
world outside. He listened intently as he was told that 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.

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 only to discover
that 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.”