My father ztz”l was a highly beloved pulpit rabbi in Baltimore.  At the same time as a former student at major European yeshivos he knew the entire Talmud and was an acknowledged expert in Jewish family law. He used to say that in his European scholarly milieu knowing Talmud by heart was the first step toward becoming a talmid chacham. He loved learning more than anything else. Every day sandwiched between his rabbinic duties he would spread his Gemara and commentaries across our large dining room table and pore over the texts that meant so much to him. He had a habit of jotting down occasional notes and insights in the margins so that every so often one comes across his succinct marginalia. These cryptic little jottings often elucidate a subtle point in the text or refer to a commentator who clarifies the issues at hand or ask a question that seems unresolved. As children we used to joke among ourselves that our father could not sit down to learn unless he had a pen in his hand and we wondered how he ever managed to learn on Shabbos when he could do no writing. Many years have passed since he left this earth to continue his studies in the heavenly beis medrash. I am now the proud owner of that magnificent Vilna Shas. Published in 1880 its thick folio pages leather binding and large crystal-clear text are still in remarkable condition. When I use these Gemaras for my personal studying I feel a certain glimmering of a bygone era.