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The Life of this Lone Soldier....
I remember that morning so well, I woke up at 6 am that morning, and little did I know I would make a decision that day that would change my life forever. It started out a normal morning, I put on my Tefillin and began my day like every other. I made breakfast and started my usual workout.
I had been an active supporter of Israel. I went to every rally, speech or movie festival that supported or in most cases, in the San Francisco Bay Area area, demonized the small country of Israel.
I had a video playing in the background, a documentary on the second Intifada (the uprising, in Arabic), which started in Israel during the month of September in the year 2000. The movie listed the numbers of terrorist caused deaths during these times. I heard the number of children under the age of 1, babies, that had been murdered.. something inside me was permanently changed. I heard my calling, I turned around, walked over to my computer and typed in "volunteer to the Israeli Army". The first thing that popped up was Machal, which stands for (mit-navim hutz- lay-aretz) or volunteers from out of the country, from there I made my first phone call and the ball began to roll.
I sold everything I owned, and bought a one way ticket to what would become the greatest adventure of my life. My mother, like all Jewish mothers, did not want me to be a combat soldier. In the end she could see that it meant everything to me to follow my dream and make it a reality. I landed in Tel Aviv, Ben Gurion airport on a Wednesday evening, I kissed the ground and felt as though I had finally made it to the my mother land. I began my studying of the language, and soon felt overwhelmed at the idea of having to learn a language well enough to potentially take life and death orders from my commanding officers. It was 6 months before I finally got my draft date. I showed up alone as my parents were back in the states and my aunt and uncle could not attend.
Once I was in, I soon realized that the army is the best teacher for a new language. The Hebrew that I had heard and read my whole life in attending temple, was not the same, it seemed so foreign to me 6 months prior to my enlistment. Suddenly, it began to make sense. I was still unable to speak but I could finally understand. When I finally arrived in my combat unit in the month of March, I had finally made it, I was beginning my training as a true warrior of Israel.
The most proud moment of my life to date, would come half way in to my basic training at my swearing in ceremony, which in Hebrew is called a ( hashba-a). Now imagine sunset, at the Western Wall the Jewish peoples holiest site, behind the 700 or so soldiers there stood thousands of family members and visitors all watching our oath to the IDF. When it finally came to my turn, I was handed my M16 and a copy of the Old Testament. I could feel the raw emotion ripping at my heart as I held back the tears of Joy and Pride, it truly was a moment I shall never forget. I saw the strength of my people and felt my hard work until that point had paid off. I finally knew what it meant to be "achim bay-nesheck", or brothers in arms.
The IDF gave me a renewed sense of strength and purpose, in both the physical and mental sense. I felt stronger than I have ever been. Upon completion of my training I was sent to the Northern part of Israel to the mountain base of Har Dov, where I would spend 6 months of my year and a half service protecting the border of Lebanon. The friends I made were immeasurably bonded together through hardship and a shared history of heroes and sacrifices to protect a way of life and its people.
Although, I am not a current soldier of the IDF, I now continue my battle back here in the Bay Area. I work to raise funds for the IDF to help its soldiers, especially lone soldiers, to make their service just a little easier. It is now my personal mission to help the youth chapter of the FIDF of the San Francisco Bay Area gain life and momentum as I continue my work as a Lone Soldier of Mother Israel.
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