It is now Yom Yerushalayim, Jerusalem Day. 43 years ago Jerusalem was liberated and reunited.

On Yom Ha'atzmaut I was talking to one of my wife's relatives during the BBQ. Apparently everyone else already knew the story, so in all the years it was never brought up, so when I heard this story for the first time, I was amazed.

He was a Paratrooper in 1967. Through a series of events (a whole other story), he ended up that June day fighting in Jerusalem, instead of somewhere else entirely. As a result, he was one of the first soldiers that fought his way into the Old City. The fighting was still going on, and they were under orders to continue fighting. But most of the Paratroopers felt that they absolutely needed to go to the Kotel. And so they did, and he was among the first Paratroopers there. The rest is history.

Now that is totally cool.


Happy Yom Yerushalayim