Hospital Windows
医院故事《病房窗外》——你是我的眼，听你带我看窗外的世界

There were once two men, who were both seriously ill. Hence, they were sharing 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, which also prevented him from becoming too stiff. His bed was next to the only wall in the room that had a window. The other man, with whom he shared this room, had to spend all his time lying flat on his back, staring at the white, dull ceiling.
曾经有两名患有重病的男子住进了一家医院的同一间病房。其中一名男子被允许每天下午坐在病床上一个小时，以帮助排出他肺部的液体，同时让他活动活动僵硬的身体。他的病床挨着病房里唯一的窗口。与他同病房的另一名男子则必须整天平躺在床上，凝视着白色、枯燥的天花板。
The men talked for hours on end. They spoke about their wives and families, their homes, their jobs, their involvement in the military service, about where they had been on vacation. They could talk endlessly with each other about their first sweethearts, about their time as a loving husband and so on.
两个病友每天一聊就是几个小时。他们谈到他们的妻子和家庭、他们的家乡、他们的工作、他们在军队的服役经历，以及他们在哪里度过假。他们一聊起初恋、夫妻恩爱这样的话题就没完没了。
Best of all, 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 to his roommate. 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 colour of the world outside.
对于他们，每天最好的时光莫过于下午靠窗的男子能够坐起来的时候。此时，他会将他能看到的窗外发生一切描述给另一张床上的病友听。另一张床上的男子开始期盼每天下午的这一个小时，窗外世界的形形色色、五彩斑斓，让他的世界变得更加广阔、生动。

The window overlooked a park with a lovely lake. Around the lake there were couples strolling romantically arm in arm amidst flowers of every colour of the rainbow. Mothers were pushing their baby carts. Ducks and swans played on the water while children sailed their model boats and played tag in the bushes surrounding the lake. Grand old trees graced the landscape, and a fine view of the city skyline could be seen in the distance.
俯瞰窗外是一个公园，公园里有一片美丽的湖水。湖边，一对对浪漫的情侣手挽手漫步在五颜六色的花丛中。一旁几位孩子妈妈推着婴儿车在散步。鸭子和天鹅在水中嬉戏，一些孩子玩着模型船，还有一些孩子在湖周围的灌木丛中玩着捉人游戏。高大古老的树木让这里的景色变得更加优美，远处还可以看到壮丽的城市天际线。
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 park and surrounding city scene. "Would the old ice-cream shop at 54 avenue still be there?" he wondered. "Would the old oak tree near my parents' house, where I used to climb in a lot as a boy, still be there?" "Would the ballroom dance school where I met my future wife for the first time still be operating?" He asked the man by the window if he could see any of these places that were so engraved in his memory. Each time he asked, the man by the window said: "Yes, nothing seems to have changed a lot, only the surrounding street scenery perhaps." Each time upon hearing this, the bedridden man closed his eyes and smiled; imagining himself being there again.
每当靠窗的男子描述所有这些美妙的细节时，另一张床上的男子就会闭上双眼，脑海中浮现着这个风景如画的公园，以及城市周边的景象。“第54大街上的那家老字号冰淇淋店还在那里吧？”他好奇地问道。“我父母家附近的那棵老橡树还在吗？我小时候经常爬到那棵树上玩。”“我和我的妻子第一次相遇的那所交谊舞学校还开着吗？”他经常问靠窗的男子是否可以看到这些被深深地刻在他记忆里的地方。每次他这么问，靠窗的男子都会回答说：“是的，好像没什么变化，也许只是周边的街景发生了些改变。”每次听到这样的回答，他都会闭上双眼，露出笑容，仿佛自己正身临其境。
Days and weeks passed. 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 man by the window portrayed it with descriptive words. Musicians, dancers in colourful extravagant outfits, jugglers performing mesmerizing tricks, children waving flags and the smell of cotton candy and other sweets filled the street. The parade passed every corner of his beloved neighborhoods in the city; from the coffee store where he would get his usual cuppa Joe to the old Cinema he and his wife frequently went to. He closed his eyes, and the march of the parade never ended since that moment. He knew now for sure he had to get better, and get out there to see all the wonderful things outside again, as soon as possible!
就这样，几天过去了，又几周过去了。在一个温暖的午后，靠窗的男子描述了一个游行队伍经过窗外的场景。尽管另一张床上的男子无法听到游行乐队演奏的乐曲，但他可以根据靠窗男子生动的语言描述，在脑海中欣赏到这一精彩的场景——乐师和舞者们身着五颜六色的盛装，杂技演员展示着让人着迷的技巧，孩子们挥舞着旗子，街道上到处弥漫着棉花糖和其他糖果的香味。游行队伍走过城市里他挚爱的社区的每个角落——从他经常坐下来喝杯咖啡的咖啡厅到他和他的妻子时常光顾的老式电影院。他闭上双眼，从那一刻起，游行队伍一直在行进，一直在行进……此时，他知道必须让自己的身体尽快好起来，再去看看窗外美妙的世界！
The next 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.
第二天早上，白班护士来到病房给他们送洗澡水，却发现靠窗的男子已在睡梦中安然死去。她很伤心，然后叫来了医务人员把尸体抬走了。
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 world outside. Finally, he would have the joy of seeing it for himself.
另一张床上的男子选择了一个合适的时机，要求将自己的床位调换至靠窗的位置。护士欣然答应并帮他调换了床位，在确认他已舒适地躺在床上之后便离开了，将他独自一人留在病房里。他缓慢地，忍着疼痛，用一只手肘撑起自己的身体，第一次从医院的窗口看到了外面的世界。他终于可以体会亲眼看到外面世界的喜悦。
He strained to slowly turn to look out the window besides the bed. It faced a blank wall. The man asked the nurse what could have compelled his deceased roommate who had described such wonderful things outside this 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."
他拉紧身体，慢慢地转过身，朝床边的窗外望去。对着窗口的是一堵空白的墙壁。男子问护士，为什么那位已故病友能够将窗外的场景描述得如此美好？护士回答说，他其实是个盲人，甚至都看不到那堵墙。她说：“也许他只是想鼓励你，让你早点恢复健康。”