On the eve of the Day of Atonement when the time had come to say Kol Nidre (the most solemn time of prayer in the Jewish year) all the Hasidim were gathered together in the House of Prayer waiting for the rabbi. But time passed and he did not come. Then one of the women of the congregation said to herself: "I guess it will be quite a while before they begin, and I was in such a hurry and my child is alone in the house. I'll just run home and look after it to make sure it hasn't awakened. I can be back in a few minutes."
She ran home and listened at the door. Everything was quiet. Softly she turned the knob and put her head into the room - and there stood the rabbi holding her child in his arms. He had heard the child crying on his way to the House of Prayer, and had played with it and sung to it until it fell asleep.
- Martin Buber
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