Cheshvan 20

Who would be so foolish as not to desire life and days to see good? Yet, we may forfeit something so desirable and precious by abusing the gift of speech, by speaking gossip or slander, or by lying.

Resolving to not lie or speak evil is not enough; we must always be on constant guard. In this case, the best guard is a fence. We put fences around our homes and properties because we wish to protect them from damage that may come from unsuspected sources. Likewise, to avoid gossip, slander, or lies, we must set up protective "fences" to avoid such an occurrence, as for example, avoiding associating with gossipers, and pausing to think before we talk about another person.

Lashon hara is not only a grievous sin, but actually defiles our speech, thus devaluating the words we utter in prayer and Torah study. Just think how revolting it would be if someone served you the finest delicacies in filthy utensils! The precious words of Torah study and prayer that we bring before God should not be contaminated by delivering them through a vehicle of speech that has been soiled by lashon hara.