By Ellie Kaufman, NFTY in Israel Participant, Bus 2
This week we participated in Gadna, which is a week where kids in Israel and from other countries can get a taste of what the
Savah (Israeli Army) is like. We began by getting our Madim (uniforms) and learning how to form a chet (our formation). We then learned many Hebrew words and commands that we used during our week at the base. We learned a lot about gun safety, purity of arms, and why the IDF uses guns before we shot an M16 ourselves. It was very cool to understand some of what combat soldiers go through when they protect Israel. We then went on Masah (a journey). The whole Maklakah (all of the kids at Gadna) went together and it was amazing to see what the land around the base was like and to run and walk as a group. I had the honor of carrying the stretcher during the masah with kids from the other Tsevetim (teams) during the Masah. It was really cool to work together with kids who I don’t even speak the same language as I do. We then slept outside to get the feel of what soldiers do during a real Masah, and it was really pretty sleeping under the stars. In the morning we got to learn how to camouflage ourselves and move quietly like real combat soldiers. I found it super fun and a really fun bonding experience with my tzefet. Through the Gadna we got very close as a tzevet of only nine kids. I learned so much about the Spirit of the IDF and about myself. I really enjoyed the Gadna and I loved the experience.
