Bravery & Courage

Last night was special.

I got to see and hear from my friend Alon Wald who came to LA from Israel to speak to a group of women from JNF about Ammunition Hill, one of the heritage sites in Israel that JNF supports.

I first met Alon over 7 years ago and must have heard his story at least as many times. But each time, it leaves me in tears and feeling inspired all over again.

Ammunition Hill was the site of the pivotal battle in the Six Day War and the reunification of Jerusalem in 1967. It was also the site and battle where Alon’s father fell when Alon was just 10 months old.

He told the story of how all of his life he was striving to know his father and to understand why he would make the choice to go to battle as a reservist. 

I won’t go into the whole story here (you should absolutely hear it for yourself!) but it came down to this- the values of bravery, courage, respect and liberation.

Now, I’m no war buff and generally lean towards a more pacifist philosophy, though I understand that it’s an unfortunate part of our reality. So when I first visited Ammunition Hill all those years ago (in 2014, in the middle of another war) I was not expecting to be inspired. But oh, how wrong I was.

Alon spoke about the bravery of his father and his fellow soldiers when they understood they must go to fight for the liberation of their people who they feared were at the brink of a second Holocaust. 

He spoke about the courage of his mother to send the love of her life off to war knowing he may not return… and 17 years later to do the same with her only son. 

He told of the same bravery and courage it took for the mothers of his friends who refused to allow their sons to go into combat no matter how much their sons threatened to never forgive them.

There’s one story I heard on that first visit that will always stay with me. It speaks to the respect for human life no matter what “side” you’re on. 

When the bloody battle was finished and the soldiers at Ammunition Hill heard the declaration of victory over their radios - that the Western Wall, the holiest site in Judaism which we had no access to for centuries, was finally in our hands - the paratrooper unit didn’t just run to go celebrate with their people. 

They stopped and took the time to bury the Jordanian soldiers that had been killed. They paused to respect and honor the “enemy” who they understood were also fighting for their own values and that no matter what, their lives should be honored and respected.

These are the stories and the values that can be felt in the air there and why I chose to rally together with my family to put a plaque for my grandfather on its Wall of Honor- honoring Jewish men & women who served their countries all over the world.

I don’t think we need to go to battle to discover the bravery and courage that lies inside all of us. I hope most of us will never have to make that choice and whether or not you support the country or the war in question, there is something to be learned. 

There are so many other ways the world needs our bravery, our courage and our “fight” for liberation.

It comes from a true understanding and grounding in your values. A desire to make the world better for the next generation… and to truly know the impact that each of us can have.