Hearing Is Believing
A young talmid chacham once asked me to bless him and his family for success. For some reason, I singled out the oldest son and asked the father, “What is his name?” The father told it to me. “And how are his ears?” I continued.
“Baruch Hashem. He has no problem, as far as we know.”
But I stubbornly insisted they have his ears checked out.
The avrech was not overly concerned. The boy had never had any ear problems before. They therefore did not bother investigating the matter.
Two months went by. Suddenly, the man and his wife noticed that this boy was not obeying them. They found themselves shouting at him and even punishing him for not listening to them. The boy’s conduct went from bad to worse. His bewildered parents could not understand what was happening to their wonder-child.
Slowly but surely, they became suspicious that maybe his hearing was faulty. Whenever they spoke with him, he would read their lips. When he could not understand what they wanted, he would ask, “What? What?” Only after they raised their voices, did he discern what they were saying.
They finally took him to an ENT specialist. A thorough check-up revealed a build-up of liquids in the ears. This was responsible for his hearing problem. The boy was sent for comprehensive audiological testing, which indicated a tremendous decrease in his sense of hearing.
Suddenly, like a bolt of lightning, the avrech remembered my instructions to check the boy’s ears. He regretted not listening immediately, an act which would have saved months of anxiety and angst.
I attest that I have no idea why I told him to check out the boy’s hearing. It was said in the merit of my forefathers.
