Good Laughs and Dark Times 🌦️

Usually the week flies by. This week, did not. Actually, it felt particularly long.    Life’s good laughs need to help get us through its dark times. And I did have a few good laughs this week. Including a complaint from my not-so-wrong son about his hairdo (from back when he was just two) being almost identical to our extraordinary grandmother, Babbi Lillian Lieberman a”h.   He created this sign for full complaining effect.   He’s got a point. He’s got a point. And this week I shed a lot of tears.  A LOT of tears. Someone incredibly special to me and to a lot of people, passed away.  It’s almost hard to believe because she has been such a central and important part of my life since I was born.    Mrs.Tzipi Diamond a”h was the closest friend to my incredible mother. Tzipi was of the most kind, compassionate, happy for others, gracious, beautiful, wise, talented, and deeply frum women I have ever met.    A mother to everyone. A role model for all.    As we are grieving, I listen to what people are saying. What made Tzipi stand out? What made Tzipi so special?   There is a consistent theme. Tzipi’s most striking quality - she was a genuinely empathetic person.   Even when one would have expected to see her physical and emotional pain, when you looked at Tzipi, that was not what you saw. She miraculously and stunningly turned her own pain into empathy for other human beings.    It was never about her. It was always about you.   When she comforted you, you truly felt comfort. When she cried with you, you knew her tears were real. You knew she understood pain, and you knew she understood you.    When she rejoiced with you (and she always did), you truly felt joy. When she laughed with you, you truly felt laughter.    When you stood near her, you felt her presence. You held her hand, you looked in her big beautiful eyes, you saw her trademark smile. You felt her love. You felt her connection.   No words needed to be exchanged.   Tzipi modeled for us empathy in its purest form.   She will always be my role model.       , Shifi