Shetach

I am really starting to feel like a part of the army. I have met some great people, and my Hebrew is coming along.

Waiting for the bus, touching up the shaving job

Getting ready for bed

3 AM wake up, ready for the shetach (field). Minus the glasses, what I normally look like around base

Monday morning we traveled to a nearby training base. When we arrived, we strapped on vests, filled our canteens, loaded up food, jerrycans, targets, and bullets into an ambulance. As soon as we finished, we trekked down to the shooting range, where the ambulance was waiting for us. Everything was unloaded, and we split up into groups of twelve before eating some lunch (our first tastes of the military rations). After that, the next ten hours were a blur of helping set up shade, loading magazines, eating, waiting, learning about the upcoming round of practice/testing, and lots of shooting. Late into the night, we finally returned to camp to get some sleep and keep guard. We got up the next morning to do it all again, but that afternoon we had a truly special surprise. Kids from around Israel had written notes in school to send to soldiers around the country, specifically lone soldiers. They also sent us snacks, but when the Mem Pay (officer of the pleuga/company) told us about the letters, I was so touched and excited to receive mine. When I was a kid, at Akiva Jewish Day School, I remember writing letters to IDF soldiers all the time. To be on the other side of that was an indescribable feeling. I got a very small, short note that I can fit in the wallet where I put my military ID, so it will always be close to my heart. After a while, in late afternoon, we were sitting and talking...and realized all the commanders were gone. I mean every single officer, sergeant, everyone was nowhere to be seen! Finally, we hear an almost simultaneous boom from the range, and we realize our higher ups are practicing, too. When they come out, some of the girls were clapping and whooping from a distance because it was so cool, but we all got a really long lecture for that a few minutes later. Later that night, after the night shooting, we were hanging out again, and all of a sudden we hear whooping and shouting and screaming and all of our commanders came running out towards us with their faces painted up and in their vests. We poured water on the ground, put the mud on our faces, lined up, and prepared to go on our first-ever (and for some girls, only) masa (basically a hike). Our masa ended up being very short, but after every masa IDF soldiers earn something. This time, each tzevet in our pleuga earned a name outside of just a number. As of that moment, I am a part of Tzevet Gefen in the Hebrew course at Michve Alon. Gefen is the word for grapevine. We were told to get down on our hands (which always means pushups), and we were confused as to what we did wrong. Instead, M also got down on her hands and we did pushups together while shouting "TZEVET GEFEN HACHI TOVOT!" (Tzevet Gefen is the best!)

The next day, we got up and started to learn about some hardcore fieldwork like camouflage, how to run with our guns (then hit the ground and aim), and crawling. It was actually really fun because I was used as an example for the camouflage exercise and got to paint my face with mud, wear branches in my hair, and hide from the mefakdot. We didn't win the contest, but it was still interesting and I loved learning about it (and all the funny looks because of how well my tzevet painted my face with mud). By the time we finished and were heading back o base, almost everyone was talking about how excited they were to go "home." Yup, after only three days in the shetach, almost all the girls considered the base to be home and were excited for the food and beds it holds. And since most of the girls assumed the showers would be full when we did arrive, I had a fantastic shower that night!

We started our full days learning Hebrew and Zionism (mostly history, wars, and important people, commanders are not allowed to talk about politics, just like in any American public school) on Thursday, and it was exhausting. It's about eight hours just in the Hebrew classroom, but altogether it ends up being about sixteen to eighteen hour-days if you factor in meals, Zionist classes, and gun checks (remember how I said they were big on safety? We get checked a few times a day to make sure we are clean of bullets).

It was such a great feeling to arrive at the train station on Friday. Everyone was tired, but after shetach week we were so much closer. I met with a bunch of people in the Haifa train station for coffee and breakfast before we went our separate ways for the weekend, and it was so relaxing to get to know everyone outside of the army setting (despite still being in our uniforms).

This upcoming week, I have my swearing-in ceremony on Tuesday! I'm really excited to finally be taking the same oath as every other soldier in IDF history in a very important city (Akko), but I'm not sure of the significance yet. We will be spending the whole day there to learn all about it. Until next time, wish me luck in classes and putting in my final placement requests!

My friend Oren from Nashville came to visit the kibbutz with his family for a bit today! I love seeing people from home!