Two men, both seriously ill, occupied the same hospital room. One man was allowed to sit up in his bed for an hour a day to drain the fluids 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 next to 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 would 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 had 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 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. 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. He began to brood and found himself unable to sleep. He should be by that window - and 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 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 attendant to take it away--no words, no fuss. As soon as it seemed appropriate, the 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.
【助读词汇】
-drain vt. 排走
-fluid n. 流体
-on end 连续地
-picturesque adj. 绘声绘色的
-ferment vt. 发酵
-brood vi. 沉思
-prop vt. 支撑
-strain 尽力
【参考译文】
两个病重的男人住在同一个病房。其中一个每天可以在床上坐一个小时排除肺里的液体，他的床靠着病房唯一的窗户。而另一个则只能整天都躺在床上。
两个男人可以连续说上几个小时。他们讨论他们的妻子和其他家庭成员，他们的家、工作、参军的事和度假时曾经去过的地方。每天下午，当靠窗的男人可以坐起来时，他就会向室友描述他从窗外可以看到的一切事物。
另一张病床上的男人几乎每天就是为这一小时而活，因为外面世界所有的活动和色彩让他的世界变宽了，也有活力了。从窗户可以俯瞰一个公园，公园里有一个动人的湖，这都是那个男人说的。鸭子和天鹅在水里嬉戏，而孩子们则玩着他们的模型船。情人们手挽手散步，拥有着彩虹般颜色的花儿开得绚烂多姿。巨大的老树让景色更加优美，还可以将远处整个城市的轮廓尽收眼底。当窗边的男人描绘着所有这些美妙的细节时，另一个男人就会闭上眼睛并想象这如画般美好的景色。
一个温暖的下午，窗边的男人又一次为室友描述了一个经过的游行。虽然另一个男人听不见外面的乐队，他可以在自己的脑海中看到窗边的男人用生动的语言描绘的这一切。突然，一个非常陌生的想法进入了他的脑海：为什么他可以拥有可以看见一切的所有乐趣而我却从来都看不到呢？这不公平。当这个想法刚刚骚动时，这个男人还为此感到羞愧。但是随着时间的流逝，他渴望看到更多景色，于是嫉妒变成了忿恨。他开始沉思并开始失眠。他应该睡靠窗的那张床——这个想法现在已经控制了他的生活。
一天深夜，当他躺在床上看着屋顶时，窗边的男人开始咳嗽。他肺里的液体让他感到窒息。另一个男人在昏暗的房间里看着窗边的男人挣扎着摸索求救按钮，他在房间的另一头听着，却没有动，他没有按下本可以把护士叫过来的按钮。不到五分钟，咳嗽声和窒息声停止了，跟着停止的还有呼吸声。现在房间里只有安静——死一般的安静。
第二天早上，护士搬来了水给他们洗澡。当她发现窗边的男人已毫无生命迹象时，她感到非常伤心，并叫来了专职护士把尸体运走——没有说话，也没有混乱。一到适合的时机，男人便问护士是否可以换到靠窗的病床上去，护士很乐意。在确定他没有感到什么不舒服之后，护士就让他一个人待着了。
慢慢地，他困难地用一个手肘把自己撑起来，去看第一眼。终于他就要能够感受到亲眼看到一切的乐趣了。他尽量慢慢地把头转过去往床边的窗户望出去。却发现看到的是一堵什么都没有的墙。
【人生启迪】
费尽心思想要得到快乐，却失去了自己唯一的快乐，还让那样一个好人无辜死去。可是一切都晚了。我们可以想象这个男人在看到那堵墙时的心理，那一定是百感交集的吧。其实快乐只是一种选择，一种心态。只要我们随时都保持一种积极的心态，那么生活中处处都充满着阳光，那个靠窗的男人不就是一个很好的例子吗？