Paratroopers At The Wall

I am jumping on board the wagon and publishing this picture. Treppenwitz has a link to this as does Avrech and I am sure many others. Since I am so late in coming to the game I debated whether to post this or not, but upon reflection it made sense to join in.

One of the main functions of this blog is to serve as a journal of my thoughts and things that are important to me and this is meaningful for a variety of reasons. If you click here this a story about the three soldiers.

As a Jew it is hard not to get emotional about this picture. The reunification of Jerusalem, control of our holy sites is exceptionally meaningful. But part of the reason that this is special to me is that I met the soldier on the far left side.

It was January of 1995. I had gone to Israel for business and was in the process of trying to find a job that would allow me to stay. I had been staying in the North and was getting ready to head back Jerusalem when a friend asked me if I was interested in meeting one of the paratroopers from the famous photo.

I didn't hesitate and said that I absolutely wanted to get a chance to shake his hand and listen to his story. The meeting took place at a kiosk in Afula. Over a falafel and a Coke I listened intently as Ziggy described the war and that particular day. I found it fascinating.

It would be nice to say that I could repeat that story here for you. It would be fantastic to try and share the tale so that you could follow it too, but I can't do it. I can't do it because it is not my story to tell and more importantly I can't do it nearly as well.

All I can do is tell you that it is a special memory for me.