Rabbi Jaech's Blog

Last week I came down with a nasty virus that quickly progressed to laryngitis.  It hurt to speak, and people could barely hear me when I tried to talk. I decided to refrain from speaking except when necessary. When I needed to communicate, I did so via text or by using the chat feature in Zoom meetings.

This was an adjustment. Most of us are used to having our voice ready to go whenever we want to use it. As a result, sometimes we might vocalize ill-formed thoughts, leading to misunderstandings, miscommunication and hurt feelings.

During my bout of laryngitis, many of the thoughts I would have freely verbalized I kept to myself. Having to type words when I needed to communicate forced me to think about how to articulate what I meant to say. This was an important reminder to be careful with words. One who guards his mouth and tongue guards himself from trouble, we read in the Biblical book of Proverbs.

This lesson is especially important in difficult times.  We are distressed about the brutal Hamas terrorist attack on Israel.  We grieve for those who died.  We worry for our loved ones in Israel and for the hostages in Gaza. We are saddened at the loss of innocent life in Israel and in Gaza. In times of distress, we must be even more careful to think before we speak.  If we do not, trouble may easily find us.  

My voice has returned.  Yet in the coming days and weeks, I will remember what I learned from my days of laryngitis.  Not every thought needs to be articulated.  And every thought that we express should be articulated with great care.