Three Minutes and a Gold Coin
A shamash let a stranger in to see the Rebbe for a fee, and some time later learned what that short visit had saved.
A story ofRav Avrohom Borensteinהרב אברהם בן זאב נחום בורנשטייןProfile ›
It is told that in Sochatchov, when the usual shamash was away in Warsaw, Reb Moshe Duvid'l served the Avnei Nezer in his place. Early one morning the Rebbe called for water to wash. Now, he said, the air is clean and the world is still, a precious time for learning. No one was to disturb him, not even a man bearing a golden crown.
Soon a clean-shaven man in a short jacket came hoping for an audience with the Rebbe. Moshe Duvid'l laughed it off. The man offered fifteen gold rubles, a fortune. Moshe Duvid'l went in and, abashed, showed the Rebbe the coin. The Rebbe was astonished. You can earn so much through me? Bring him in, but only for three minutes.
The visit lasted ten minutes. When Moshe Duvid'l came in to hurry the man out, he heard the Rebbe say to him that if he kept the three things he had been told, there would be a recovery.
Some time later in Kalish a bearded man in a long coat greeted him warmly and brought him home for a feast. He was the same man. His wife had been gravely ill, and among the Rebbe's three instructions was to move their children from the modern schools to a traditional cheder. His wife had resisted at first, but she agreed, and from then on she grew steadily better.
The one who recorded the tale saw in it how deeply the Rebbe loved every Jew. To help one man earn a little money, he gave up precious minutes of his morning learning.
Source: Abir HaRo'im (Piotrkow, 1935).
The Avnei Nezer guarded his learning fiercely, yet when a person truly needed him he set it aside. Today, notice one request that interrupts your plan, from a child, a neighbor or a colleague, and ask whether this is the moment to give your best attention rather than whatever is left over. Put down your phone, look at the person and listen without watching the clock. Not every interruption deserves yielding, but some are the real work of the day.