“Dreams aren’t those things you see when you sleep at night but those
pictures you see that keep you from sleeping at night” - JIM
Two men occupied the same hospital room. One man could 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
each day. They spoke of many things; their wives, families, homes,
jobs, and even their involvement in the military service, where they had
been on vacation. Every afternoon when the man in the bed by the window
could sit up, he would pass the time by describing 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 enlivened by all the
activity and colour of the world outside.
The window
overlooked a park with a lovely lake. Ducks and swans wadded in the
water, children sailed their model boats and lovers walked arm in arm
amidst beautiful scented flowers. The city’s skyline painted a fantastic
view in the background, and could be seen in the distance. As the man
by the window described all he saw in detail, the man on the other side
of the room would close his eyes and imagine the picturesque scene.
