Rear Window of a Hospital Room

My husband is Jimmy Stewart. 

Not It’s a Wonderful Life Jimmy or Western Jimmy, but the Jimmy Stewart of Alfred Hitchcock’s Rear Window.

I love this old classic thriller. It’s one of our favorite family movie night films. But, when he asked me to bring his binoculars to him while he’s holed up in the hospital, I began to wonder if I should feel flattered to be the Grace Kelly of this scenario, or if I should start to worry. 

No, the view from the rear window of his hospital room simply frames an expansive city landscape below - not a murder mystery. Hopefully.

But, as we sit at that tenth-floor window and watch the constant motion of the highways and train station outside, this bird’s eye view does put the inner train of thought into motion. 

Every window of every building and passing train car, each vehicle, and each pedestrian; all represent a story, a life being lived. 

They may be moving forward but stuck in the past.

They may be running from something, running late, running on empty. 

They may be walking on cloud nine, or taking a first step.

They may be lost and searching, cruising on autopilot, facing a long hard road ahead.

Just like those passersby cannot see the story unfolding in this hospital window, we don’t know what those around us are going through. Sometimes we are given a front-row passenger seat into someone’s life; most of the time, we have the window view.

So, we might as well use that window of opportunity to offer a glimpse of hope. A glimpse can change one’s entire trajectory. Sometimes all it takes is eye contact, kind words, a simple gesture, grace and patience, a smile.

A knock on the door returns our attention to the room.

After chatting with the lovely woman as she emptied the trash can, her smile can be heard behind her mask. “You, sir, have a Kool-Aid smile. Keep it up. A great, big Kool-Aid smile brings healing.”

In a world full of sickness, that is the kind of infectious contagion that’s needed. 

My Jimmy Stewart may not be spreading suspicion or solving any murder mysteries during confinement, but he is certainly spreading faith, hope, and Kool-Aid.

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