Thirteen in the Avos and the Imahos
The letters in the names of the Avos and Imahos each add up to thirteen, the number of Hashem's mercies and of oneness.
Rav Shimshon found a hidden pattern in the names of our forefathers. Count the Hebrew letters in Avraham, Yitzchak and Yaakov, and you reach thirteen. Count them in Sarah, Rivkah, Rachel and Leah, and you reach thirteen again. Thirteen is the number of the thirteen attributes of mercy. The same number is the gematria of echad, one. He explained that this is no coincidence: the Avos and Imahos were the ones who spread the oneness of Hashem throughout the world. And when the letters of the Avos and the Imahos are added together, the total is twenty-six, the numerical value of Hashem's holiest Name. In his reading, the first parents of the Jewish people carried both mercy and oneness into the world, and together their names spell out the Name of Hashem Himself.
Source: Rav Shimshon of Ostropoli, kabbalistic writings (Sefer HaKarnayim with Dan Yadin and related works); the exact printed passage is not located
Rav Shimshon sees the Avos and Imahos as the ones who carried both mercy and the knowledge that Hashem is one. You can continue their work in small ways. Today, find one moment to answer someone with extra patience, whether it is a family member, a colleague or a stranger on the street. Before you answer, remind yourself that Hashem treats us with mercy every day. Then let a little of that mercy pass through you.