What’s Really Important?

A friend had to remind me of that.  Thank you Sheila. (See comment on previous post)

I decided to try to make this posting upbeat.  Feeling a little better about myself  since last Saturday.  Life’s little ups and downs, I guess.

I received the following in an e-mail from a long-time friend.  I’ve known him since elementary school and I won’t tell how long that’s been (our bowling balls were rocks).

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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 military service, where they had been on vacations… 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 when 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 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 scenes.  One warm afternoon, the man by the window described a parade passing by.  Although the other man could not hear the band – he could see it in his mind’s eye as the gentleman by the window portrayed it with descriptive words.

Days, weeks and months 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 real world outside.  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 to describe 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.”

Epilogue:

There is tremendous happiness in making others happy, despite our own situations.  Shared grief is half the sorrow, but, happiness, when shared, is doubled.

“Today is a gift … that’s why it’s called The Present.”

I pray you will pass this on to all your friends for whom you wish God’s Blessings.