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 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 outside world.

The window overlooked a park with a lovely lake, the man said. Ducks and swans

played on the water while children sailed their model boats. Lovers walked arm in

arm amid 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. Unexpectedly,

an alien thought entered his head:

Why should he have all the pleasure of seeing everything while I never get to see

anything ?

It didn't seem fair. As the thought fermented the man felt ashamed at first. 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 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 less than five minutes the

coughing and choking stopped, along with 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 -- no works, no fuss. 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.

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.