Garin Tzabar
prides itself on its ability to bring together young adults who are
compelled to make aliyah and serve in the Israeli Defense Forces. In
order for the organization to achieve the goal of successfully
providing a framework of success in Israel through a unique group
environment, each Garin (usually representative of a specific region
or state, like Florida or the Midwest) has to develop and grow as a
close-knit “family.” The idea is that the people in your Garin
become your brothers and sisters, those people who share your good
times, and pull you through the hard. Now that we have completed our
seminars (having attended the final one this weekend), it's all
starting to come together!
It should first
be said that the nature of the seminars allows for people to “come
and go” along the way, meaning that someone who attended the first
seminar may find that the program doesn't suit him/her or that
someone may only discover the program after the process has already
started, joining a little bit “late.” Although there has been a
core around from the beginning, the Garin now has more than twenty
members, with roughly half from the United States and half from
Canada (the two sides only meeting this past week!) We are even
rumored to be having a few European additions once we arrive in
Israel.
Even with the
diversity of backgrounds, our Garin has already started to show its
potential for fulfilling the “family” environment it is supposed
to.
Every family
has its jokes. Ours has plenty. There is Frank (not his real
name), the janitor of the hotel where we held our seminars, who
became as much a part of the group as anyone else. There are the many
interesting games that we came up with in our free time (in other
words, when we had a minute to breathe), like playing Bocce Ball with
glass bowls on a conference room table. There are the fake and
outrageous combinations of injuries and ailments we invented for one
of our Garinim when he met with an army representative, which have
somehow stuck and found their way into every second conversation. We
never miss an opportunity to advertise his many “allergies!”
Every family
has its roles. Ours has plenty! In fact, individual
“family members” often take up many roles. We have the loud and
the quiet; the very outgoing and the reserved; the “ideas”
people and the “plans” people...we have all types. Although just
about everyone is still only finding his/her position in the dynamic
group of ours', it's always possible to see who brings what to the
table.
Every family
has goals. Ours has one big one and many, many smaller ones. It's
always fascinating to hear the conversations between different
members of the Garin, sharing hopes, fears, and advice about the
decisions they are making and this journey the group is embarking on.
A family is there for this exact kind of support and encouragement.
Sitting in our
circles and our group activities this weekend, or enjoying any of the
above and more, it became apparent that this young family formed far
from Israel will be the best foundation for our success and happiness
there. It may, yet, grow or shrink a small amount, but our Garin,
the family we are taking to Israel has been given the start its life
and its identity.
- Darren
