From the first moments of
excitement upon driving into the gates of our gorgeous Kibbutz
Malkiya for the first time, to developing deep and meaningful
friendships with members of the Garin I hadn't yet met, it's been a
period of thrilling change and adjustment.
With twenty-nine of us, it
may seem a bit difficult to build a cohesive group, but it's been the
complete opposite (something I'll delve into a bit later on). The
group-building games and exercise the program are well known for
always seem to work in the end!
After the first week came
to an end, we participated in a program called Gadna. To summarize,
Gadna is a pre-military program for Israeli youth as well an army
simulation program for tourists. We arrived at the Gadna base in Sde
Boker, deep in the heart of the Negev. Unfortunately, due to the size
of our Garin, we were not all put in the same tzevet (team).
The first day consisted of
mostly logistical tasks, meeting our mefaked (commander) and learning
the base and procedures we'd need to follow for the remainder of the
week. As the day was actually too hot to legally have us perform
serious physical activity, running and push-ups were at a minimum
(though it wouldn't stay like that for the rest of the week!). We
received our uniforms (well-worn and ill-fitted) which we were
instructed to wear for the rest of the week. Although Gadna is not
officially a part of the army, but rather a simulation, it felt
fulfilling to be putting on the uniform of the Israel Defense Forces
for the very first time in my life.
The next few days consisted
of mostly physical work. We sprinted from location to location,
considering the obscenely short amount of time our commander would
give us to cover a large distance, and every small offense resulted
in push-ups. Apart from the tedium of doing sprints and push-ups just
for the sake of doing them, we were often rewarded with fascinating
classes and tips for our upcoming lives as soldiers.
I've become well-versed on
a few particular topics, one being about the neshek (weapon), after several classes with detailed
instructions about the M16, one of the most commonly used rifles in
the IDF. It all culminated in a day firing the rifle at the range.
While firing didn't feel particularly special, the idea that this
would most likely be the first of many shots I fire at the shooting
range donning the uniform certainly resonated with me.
I've been educated about
army procedure and pieces of information which may prove useful to me
in the army. While many overseas groups participate in Gadna on a
weekly basis, this particular session was designed slightly
differently, as every participant was a future soldier. With that
considered, the classes were far more in-depth than they usually are,
and therefore far more interesting.
The big highlight of the
week, however, was going out into the shetach (the field). A combat
soldier trains for weeks in the shetach, which could be anywhere from
the hot, endless deserts of the south to the snowy mountains of the
north. We completed a one night simulation of life in the desert as
soldiers, sleeping in small tents, eating combat rations, and
learning about stealth. Despite waking up with sand-caked eyes and
thorns in my clothes, the experience proved to be a positive one I won't soon
forget.
I became significantly
closer with the members of my Garin who were in my tzevet,
understandable considering we lived together for five days and spent
every waking moment together as a group. Throughout the week, I came
to miss each of the other Garin members in the second tzevet.
Obviously, I came to realize that the games and tasks our program
staff constantly have us do are vital to us. We aren't merely a
group of twenty-nine soon-to-be soldiers living together for a few
months. We have become a family. We have grown to love and support
each other, each of us understanding that to succeed as a group, we
need each other. The strength of the bond that's been built is
difficult to explain, though clear for anyone to see.
As the program came to an
end, I returned home to Malkiya for a quiet weekend. I took advantage
of the usual breathtaking views and perfect weather while getting
ready for my Tzav Rishon (the first draft), which I'll discuss in
depth in the next post. It's been a meaningful few weeks here so far
with a few more like them to follow.
-Brett
-Brett
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