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Bringing happiness to others

 

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 is 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 the 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

listened 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!

 

The man asked the nurse what could have compelled his deceased roommate

who had described such wonderful things outside the 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.

 

Lesson to be learned: There's 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.