I had the great zechus to meet Leah Miriam when she moved to my community. I was walking around the supermarket with my children when a smiling woman with an Australian accent asked me if my children had letters in a sefer Torah. Thus began my friendship with one of the most special women I’ve had the privilege to call a friend. Mostly our friendship developed over my numerous visits to her, always marked by cake and tea (so we’d make brachos), tzedaka, and Torah learning together, in addition to friendly chat and her sharing her wisdom. She was always giving and never wanted to take anything. I learned a lot from watching her. Every moment of her time seemed dedicated to her family. She’d send daily moshiach moment recordings to her grandchildren. She tried hard to arrange visits to each of them as regularly as possible. And she’d stock her home with books, toys, games and treats so that they’d be happy visiting her. She gave me valuable advice on a number of topics. One particularly useful set of discussions pertained to my putting my youngest son into school, which was a challenge at that time. And even on her last day in this world, she was asking after my children's well being. I know she struggled with health challenges, but she hid it very gracefully. Even when I went to visit her while she was recovering from a challenge once, her concern was why Ha-Shem put her in that situation. (Answer: to teach the others there about the 7 mitzvos Bnei Noach, and deliver Shabbos candles where appropriate)

I miss Leah Miriam already, and only hope that I can retain and carry on with the things she taught.