Two soldiers, who were both badly injured, shared the same military hospital room. One man was allowed to sit up in his bed for two hours each day to ease his bed sores. He

faced the room’s only window. The other man, however, 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, and often exchanged war stories.

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 through the window. The

man in the other bed began to live for those two hour periods during which his world would be broadened and enlivened by all the activity of the world outside. The window overlooked a lovely pond, set inside wonderful parklands. Ducks played on the water, while children sailed their model boats. Couples walked arm in arm amidst beautiful flowers and dogs ran and barked excitedly. Grand old trees graced the landscape, and a fine view of the surrounding mountains 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 sunny afternoon the man by the window described a parade passing by. Although the

other man couldn’t hear the music and singing; he could see it all in his mind’s eye as the

soldier by the window described the events in precise detail.

Weeks and months went by. The two soldiers would swap stories and chat about the outside world and their dreams and aspirations for the future.

One morning, the nurse arrived 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 his 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, he regained his strength and eventually he was able to sit up and look at the world outside.

He strained as he turned to look out of the window beside his bed, but it wasn’t there.

Instead, his bed faced nothing but a blank wall — the only window being a skylight in the

roof. The man asked the nurse what could have compelled his friend who had died to

describe such wonderful things outside of the window, when there was not even a window

to look through. The nurse replied…“Your friend was blind. He couldn’t see anything.

Perhaps he just wanted to encourage you and give you hope!”