I once arrived at Los Angeles a day after that city suffered a devastating earthquake. A man told me that there was a woman who had been badly hurt in the earthquake. She was lying in the hospital. Would I care to do the mitzvah of bikur cholim and visit her?
I agreed to his request. When I entered her room, I found that she had already opened her eyes. I asked if she recalled what she was doing precisely when the earthquake began.
“The night before, I had received a shipment of diamonds from Belgium. Immediately before the earthquake, I was busy counting and sorting the diamonds by size. Suddenly, I found myself in the hospital.”
“Didn’t you feel the earth shaking under you?”
“I felt nothing at all,” she responded. “How could I realize something was amiss? I was completely involved in the diamonds at the time.”
Upon hearing her narrative, I was struck by its lesson. When we pray, we should feel as though we are counting diamonds. We must be completely immersed in our prayer, thinking only of the words we say, and consider each one a gem. Our prayers have the power to rise heavenward and stand in our defense.
We should pray slowly and clearly, with deliberation, like one who is counting coins or jewels. In this manner, our prayers will be considered precious in Hashem’s eyes.
