16/11/2023
Shir means song in Hebrew.
Shir is the name of my youngest first cousin (of the nine cousins on my mom’s side who all live in Israel.)
Shir is a mom to three young daughters, the youngest is a baby, - one and a half years old. Shir is a doctor- a dentist to be exact.
Shir was recently featured in the news.
My sister translated some of that news article and wrote this post and I am proud to share it as well.
Since the Israeli massacre, my younger cousin Dr Shir, a dentist, has been identifying slaughtered and burned bodies on the frontlines of Israeli soldiers. She’s worked alongside doctors and rabbis and many others to do so.
She uses dental identification and compares the photograph of the dead’s teeth with the data that came from the IDF database and dental clinics have been working together.
Only on the fifth day, did Dr. Shir say she finally allowed herself to fall apart. "It was the first night I slept at home," she says. "My youngest baby, one and a half years old, was sleeping next to me. I looked at her, at her softness, and I remembered the horror stories I had heard about babies being slaughtered. It finished me. What world did I bring her to? A world where pure babies are slaughtered.”
My other cousin, her brother Roni, and his daughter, have been serving on the Home Front Command. It’s his responsibility to make sure that the home front in various regions of Israel, function in a manner consistent with its defense policy, and to assist in all that is required in life-saving operations.
Life has been intense to say the least. These people, my family, are my heroes. I know life with them well, hanging with cousins and families. I don’t know them as well in uniform. All I know is that when duty calls, they put on their uniforms and do what needs to be done, leaving their families to serve to keep their homeland safe and in existence.
All friends and family in Israel have and still do serve. Thank you all. I miss you all. Your stories are meaningful and real and important. We are all family.
Scroll to see additional photos of Shir, her brother Roni, and his daughter.
