A moment that will last forever

There are moments in life when a simple message can penetrate the soul and move it to its absolute core.

A few days ago I received an email regarding a photograph I took during the Jerusalem Day celebrations 16 years ago. I remembered the photo, the scene, and the atmosphere perfectly. I remembered the light, the time of day, and the sun beginning to set. I remembered the young boy walking on the palms of his hands with admirable stability.

I love photography with a great passion because of its magic to capture a moment and freeze it in memory, in our eyes, and so often, in our hearts. Another part of that magic is the ability to connect with people, to share those unique moments, and to give the gift of a memory to people I don’t even know—and by publishing it, to share that moment with the wider public.

Upon reading the email, I learned that the little boy I photographed walking on his hands, when the time came to enlist for his military service, chose to join the elite unit of the Combat Engineering Corps, Yahalom, which specializes in subterranean tunnel warfare and high-risk special operations.

Suddenly, I learned his name, Hillel Ofen, and the names of his parents, Hanital and Boaz. I got to know a little more about him, and tragically, I learned that he died during a unit training exercise just three years ago. He was a boy full of life and energy who didn’t get to live long enough, but who certainly left a unique and eternal memory in so many people.

I felt deeply honored that his parents chose a photograph I took to preserve his memory, helping Hillel live on in the hearts of his loved ones and of people who never met him but hold an immense respect for those who choose the difficult and profoundly valuable path of defending their country.

May he rest in peace, and may his memory live on forever.

Shalom Ariel,

The link we sent is to the photograph you took 16 years ago during the Flag March on Jerusalem Day, near Damascus Gate. Our dear son Hillel, with his characteristic light heartedness, walked the entire way on his hands, standing in stark contrast to the stern-faced police officers standing beside him.

As Jerusalem Day approaches this weekend, we wanted to share with you that this image is deeply engraved in our hearts. Our dear son Hillel fell nearly three years ago in a training accident within the Yahalom unit. Hillel was a man of conversation, of love, and of connections, and for us, this photograph truly represents an aspect of his character that stayed with him into adulthood.

Ahead of Memorial Day this year, an exhibition was set up at the Yahalom base featuring photos of the unit’s fallen soldiers. We chose to display this exact photograph there because of what it represents.

Thank you for a moment of being able to look back and frame such a meaningful memory for us.

Boaz and Chanital Ofen

The late Hillel Nechemia Ofen, of blessed memory. Jerusalem Day (27th of Iyar). Masses of people march on foot through the streets of the capital in the traditional Flag Dance, celebrating the liberation of the Temple Mount and the Western Wall during the Six-Day War. Hillel marches the entire way effortlessly on his hands. A photographer for the Jerusalem Post, capturing with his artistic eye the contrast between childhood joy of life and the solemn expressions of the police officers securing the area, documented and published the moment in his column, ‘Jerusalem Street.’ A love of life, creativity, and thinking outside the box characterized Hillel well into his adulthood. Alongside his lofty dreams of repairing the world and his desire to belong to the magnificent past of the Jewish people, Hillel always knew how to pay attention to details, to see into the hearts of the people around him, and to pave his own unique path. As he wrote in his journal: ‘The way to reach God in a world of nature is through encountering people who were created in His image.