“I’m returning the child you entrusted to me”: A warrior’s mother’s heartbreaking eulogy
The funeral of 23-year-old Lt. Harel Ettinger z”l, who fell in Lebanon, son of Rabbi Achiad Ettinger Hy”d, who was murdered in a shooting attack about five years ago, took place yesterday (Sunday, Oct. 6) at the Eli cemetery in Samaria.
Tamar, Harel’s mother, eulogized him through tears: “I’m returning to you, God, your child that you entrusted to me. I tried to raise him and nurture him with love and joy to the best of my ability.”
Tamar showed great strength as, even in her moment of grief, while standing before her son’s grave, she thanked God for what He had given her: “Immense gratitude to the Almighty who protected you from all harm this year, great gratitude that you reached such a good and fitting place for you and fulfilled the peak of your dreams.”
During the eulogy, Tamar addressed her children and recalled the loss of her husband alongside the tragic death of her son: “God chose Dad and Harel from our garden. He also chose us because He knows we have the strength, and He gave, gives, and will give us power, joy, and life. My dear children, I looked at you over the last three days, and with all the great pain and loss, I thanked God for this abundance. I love and appreciate each and every one of you.”
“Master of the Universe, I have no questions. I believe with complete faith that everything is for the best. I’m returning to you the pure soul you gave to Achiad and me 23 years ago,” the mother struggled to hold back tears, “I’m returning to you your child that you entrusted to me. I tried to raise him and nurture him with love and joy as best I could, but I ask you, Master of the Universe, for redemption with mercy, redemption with grace, redemption with sweetness that we may feel and see Your compassion.”
Efrat, Harel z”l’s sister, emphasized his great dedication to his soldiers, recounting that even when he had little time, he chose to use it to prepare treats for them: “You would call from some remote place with the soldiers and say, ‘Efrat, I’m here for Shabbat, send me recipes.’ You wanted so much to spoil them.”
“How driven you were. What was important to you, you pursued to the end without compromise, whether it was baking matbucha [a dessert treat] or getting accepted where you wanted in the army,” she added in heartbreaking tears, “My little brother whom I love so much. How can one reduce a life to a page? How can one capture appreciation, love, and admiration in words? My soul is bound to yours. As far as I’m concerned, you’re coming back in a week or two at most. How almost every time you left the army you came, even if just to see your nephews for a second. How you loved them and they loved you. What an amazing uncle you were.”
Originally published in Hebrew at https://www.now14.co.il/.
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