By Gaby Faigenblat, Machon ’18 Participant

This week was insane! We did so much I don’t even know where to start. One of the most challenging things I had to do this week was wake up at 4 am to hike Masada. It was exhausting to have to hike with only 5 hours of sleep. As challenging as that was I learned a lot from it, most importantly that there is a lot more to Israel than meets the eye. I learned this while doing a street photography workshop with a man named Jonnie. He told us to go up to Israelis on the street and ask them what they love and what they hate about Israel and all the answers were so diverse. It really opened my eyes to how locals really see the land us diaspora Jews see as perfect. We also went to the Dead Sea and we got to put the mud on our faces and it felt amazing. We got so many cute pictures, and after I washed it off my skin was softer than anything I have ever felt in my life. This week was so much fun and I can’t wait to see what next week brings!

Traveling allows you to experience and become a part of a different culture

Year Course participant Steph Blizter reflects on Arik Einstein’s passing

Even before I went to CYJ Sprout Lake (starting in Ofarim) I was singing Arik Einstein’s music.  “Ani V’Ata” was my anthem by 4^th grade; the song helped me define what I believe is my purpose in the world.

Last night (November 26^th) at 11:45 pm, I was out with some friends when I heard the song “Oof Gozal” being sung by some people out on the streets. Memories of camp and year round activities washed over me.  I was confused as to why people would be singing the song until I got home and saw the news on the Internet.

“Arik Einstein passes away at the age of 74” is what the headlines read.

November 27^th was an all around somber day.  The sky was gray and the feeling in the air was gloomy.  A group of us from Year Course felt obligated to pay our respects to the man who composed the songs we sang as we created some of our best memories as campers.  We caught a bus to Rabin Square in Tel Aviv from our apartments in Jerusalem to attend the memorial service.

The ceremony was moving.  Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and others spoke in front of a large crowd of thousands of people wearing red (for HaPoel Tel Aviv) reminiscing about Arik Einstein and his impact on people around the world.

I felt compelled to attend the ceremony; it was important to me.  Although I’m not one to cry over the loss of a celebrity, I couldn’t help but shed some tears because Arik Einstein was more than a celebrity.  Arik was a thoughtful, modest, talented musician who greatly influenced my friends and me.  It will be different singing his songs in the future; it is no longer singing with him about his dreams, it will now be singing in his memory trying harder than ever to make his dreams a reality.

You and I will change the world  אני ואתה נשנה את  העולם

And we will together, in the spirit of Arik Einstein.

Year Course participant Yoni Krakow writes about the Year Course trip to Hevron.

Our siyur to Hevron last Thursday was one of the most interesting experiences I have had on Year Course so far.  We began the day on the bus where we first heard from Nadav, a member of Shovrim Shtika (Breaking the Silence), an alliance of former IDF soldiers protesting against Israeli military and government action in Hevron. With Nadav, we toured the area of the city that was partially blocked off to Arab citizens. Nadav shared his experiences serving in Hevron as a member of the IDF and discussed house raids he used to make in the middle of the night, which he categorized as an abuse of the authority of army. We walked up the main street, Al-Shuhada, previously the center of commerce, industry, and culture in Hevron, which is now all but deserted.  We saw various other sites within the 3% of the city that is closed to Arabs, and unfortunately were not able to experience any of the other 97% of the city, which is closed to Jews.  I was proud of the way the group challenged Nadav and his views, and although for the most part we disagreed with him, we maintained a relatively high level of respect for his opinion. It was an eye opening experience to walk the streets of Hevron, something I never could have imagined. There is definitely is something eerie about the part of the city we were able to see, and I wish I knew a way to resolve the conflict so the Arabs and Jews of Hevron could live harmoniously. However, what the IDF is doing right now has kept the Jewish citizens of Hevron as well as Ma’arat Hamachpela safe, and that will remain their number one priority.  I find it extremely important to hear the opinions of those who have drastically different points of view than I do, thus hearing Nadav was a truly educational and eye opening experience.

In the afternoon we visited Ma’arat Hamachpela, the tomb of the matriarchs and the patriarchs. We were led by Rabbi Simcha, a member of the Hevron Jewish community who made Aliyah from New York.  We toured the Ma’ara and saw burial sites of our ancestors, and heard some crazy stories about those that have ventured to journey down into the supposed burial sites.  We followed that with a mincha service, and for the first time in my life, I was part of a minyan.  Although in general I’m not so big on praying, I really enjoyed being a part of this service in such a holy place (not to mention it only took about 10 minutes).  Our next stop was the synagogue where Rabbi Simcha prays followed by a trip to the Jewish residential community where we visited his home.  Rabbi Simcha presented the polar opposite viewpoint of Nadav. He explained that he moved to Hevron to make an impact as a Jew and ensure the continuity of Jews in this holy city, a continuity that has lasted over 3,000 years.  He is an example of the settler mindset that feels it is absolutely necessary to maintain control over holy sites like Ma’arat Hamachpela and also make sure that Hevron will always be a Jewish city.

We closed the day by visiting Elazar, a settlement in the West Bank, where we met Benjy’s cousin Yehudit. She shed light on what it was like to live in a settlement including all the positive and negative aspects associated with raising a family and having a home there.  It was interesting to see a non-stereotypical settler in the West Bank and see the viewpoint of an average citizen rather than a professional.

Overall, this siyur was one of my favorite days of Year Course and I can’t wait to do others like it in our last month or so in Jerusalem.

View more pictures from the trip.

Hannah Newburger shares her recent overnight trip on the Year Course Business Track:

I would just like to say, more people should sign up for this track! It was awesome and if this overnight is a reflection of the rest of the opportunities we get on this track, we are going to have an incredible time on year course.

We started with a visit to the Haifa branch of Intel. It was amazing! It was so interesting to see how the microchips are processed and tested. For instance heat is applied to every microchip in order to simulate use, time, and damage. Out of every batch tested 90%-92% of the chips pass but Intel-Haifa was the first Intel in the entire world to have 100% of a batch pass this test.

After Intel we visited Industrial Park, which is filled with a bunch of small businesses, factories, and much more. There we saw an extensive car collection with cars dating back to the 1920’s. We also saw a processing plant that manufactures tools and we got to walk on the floor of the plant, which needless to say was so cool.

After this we headed to the village of Klil, where we stayed the night. Klil is a self sustaining environmentally friendly village in the north. It has a very laid back, hippie vibe. We stayed in a small cabin, which was so cozy. There was a fireplace, a fully equipped kitchen, a fire pit outside, a garden, and eastern inspired decorations all over plus an attic area.

For dinner, we were treated to some amazingly fresh and tasty food. But before we had breakfast we had a tai chi class which was new for me, but a great experience. For breakfast we had shakshuka, salads, breads, cheeses, teas, and Turkish coffees. It was to die for. Afterwards we headed to a local farm which offers camp grounds, fresh goat dairy products, and horse back riding lessons. We also did some team exercises there, which brought us much closer as a group. Then we went to בירה מלכה, an Israeli brewery, and we got to see where they brew beer. We learned about the entire process, then we had lunch and sampled some of the beers while taking in a beautiful view of the north.

All in all what I loved about this trip was that not only did we get to learn about big and small businesses, we saw how each one uniquely functions. It was such an incredible overnight and I would highly suggest the business track to anyone remotely interested in business. This overnight gave me a great overview of the limitless possibilities in business.

View more pictures from the trip.

With another year coming to an end, the incredible stories about our chanichim’s experiences are in no short supply.  Here is a great piece written by Adi Genosar about her volunteer placement, Magen David Adom (Israel’s Red Cross).

Never in my wildest dreams did I imagine doing the things I’ve done in the past two months. My name is Adi Genosar, and I am a 19-year-old Israeli, who lives in Atlanta, Georgia. I am currently in Israel on a gap year Masa program called Young Judaea Year Course. On Year Course, I was afforded the opportunity to volunteer with Magen David Adom for a short period. MDA was never something I saw myself being able to do. I knew I wanted to be a part of something bigger than me, bigger than anything I have ever been involved in, something worthy of not just me but others around me. That something is undoubtedly the MDA Overseas Volunteer Program. After taking the 60 hour course and starting to volunteer daily at the Rishon L’Tziyon station, I fell in love! The experiences and friendships I’ve made have left an everlasting impact on my life and changed me as a person. This one case still keeps me thinking

It was just another normal morning shift. I had already had one or two calls and now I was just hanging out at the station watching a movie. “34 Nesiyah (call for ambulance 34),” the moked (dispatch) announced over the loud speaker. I quickly grabbed my stuff and headed to the ambulance. As soon as I was in my seat and buckled, we heard what our call was, and my adrenaline was pumping. “Mechusar hakara (unconscious and not breathing) 65 year old woman…”  This was it! This was the moment they talked about during our MDA training where you need to be prepared for what’s coming. I grabbed two pairs of gloves and stuffed one in my pocket and put the other pair on. I prepared the equipment to come off the ambulance as quickly as possible. As we zoomed down the streets in Rishon L’Tziyon with the sirens screeching, my driver, knowing this would be my first CPR, started calmly explaining the procedure. I took a deep breath as we parked, and then it was time to go.

With everything in hand we headed up the elevator to the 3rd floor, ready. Or so we thought. The minute we got there we saw the door wide open and a woman doing compressions on a young man on the floor. We quickly assessed the new situation and quickly started. I remember my driver looking at me directly in the eyes and saying to “start compressions” while my tzevet (team) got the rest of the equipment out. I panicked slightly as I began to wonder if I knew what I was actually doing. All I remember thinking was “1…2…3…4…” and staring into this kid’s wide-open teary eyes as I tried saving his life. Time started flying and within a matter of minutes a MICU (Mobile Intensive Care Unit) arrived at the door, medications at hand and ready to help us. It was nearly impossible to handle such a serious case with a normal ambulance. They too assessed the situation while I continued compressions. I switched off with someone in their team, and we each continued doing rounds, giving him breaths, shocks and medicine for over an hour and forty-five minutes.

Sadly, we eventually concluded that nothing remained for us to do for him. We had to just let go, move out of the way, and let the paramedics take care of the rest. It was really difficult, and I have to say the hardest part was looking into his eyes, wanting him to wake up, knowing that he was just a nineteen year-old boy, someone the same age as me. It’s crazy to think about it. However, I had to put my feelings aside and continue helping out. I was told to clean the equipment and CPR area and organize it all in the ambulances. As I grabbed the equipment, I saw them cover the kid with a simple blanket which had been lying next to us on the floor. They took the family into a different room while I organized the gear and returned it to the ambulance, just as if it were any other call, and waited for the rest of the team to return.

Once everyone had left the apartment, we were left waiting for a different organization to come to take care of the body. The driver arranged a sort of huddle. He told us what was happening at the moment, that we had done well, and explained the overall situation. Before he ended the talk, he pointed out to everyone, that although this was my first CPR, I worked as part of the team and did the best compressions of the day. I couldn’t believe that he had given me such a huge compliment. The last time I performed CPR, I was pressing into the chest of a dummy!

I remember taking a deep breath and thinking to myself, “Wow, I’ve actually done it!” The situation left me rather dumbfounded. I wasn’t precisely sad. Although someone had just died, I knew that my whole team had my back, and I knew that I really had done everything I could do. I really surprised myself! I never thought I could ever do something like that in real life!

MDA has really taught me to appreciate life. It showed me how to be a part of a team, how to be a leader, and most importantly how valuable a person can be…including me!

Tzeva Kachol visited Kibbutz Nir Am located near the city of Sderot, a place unfortunately most known for its close proximity to Gaza which has fired rockets over the city for the past ten years.  Some of the rockets have fallen into the kibbutz’s agricultural fields.

With help from the Sderot Media Center, the chanichim arranged to help the kibbutz’s elderly residents in the days leading up to Pesach, cleaning their public gardens and helping to kasher their kitchens for the holiday.

First, they took a short tour of Nir Am, seeing the metal factory and meeting some of the residents who were incredibly grateful for Year Course’s visit.   Dividing up into small groups, half the chanichim pulled out weeds and helped to beautify the areas outside the houses while the other half helped put chametz into storage and throw away anything not needed for Pesach.

Tzeva Kachol making a difference on Kibbutz Nir Am

It was clear from the residents how much they care about their home, seeing that there was only desert when they arrived decades ago (Nir Am was founded in 1943).  The Year Course visit really touched the residents who were moved that the chanichim cared about a place that meant so much to the kibbutzniks.

Said Aviva Weinstein of Washington, DC, “A lot of what we talk about in the Activism track is the importance of giving a community help that they actually need, as opposed to focusing on what is easiest for us to give.  It was an enjoyable afternoon but really shocking to hear the news the next day that rockets had fallen again so soon after our visit.

Together with the NU Campaign, Tzeva Kachol is creating t-shirts to raise both fund and awareness.  In addition, the activism track is working with the Koby Mandell Foundation to send birthday care packages to Camp Koby, a camp created to provide positive experiences for victims of terror.

I am writing to you now from Young Judaea Year Course as an official graduate of Course Marva 123 (קורס מרווה קכ״ג). With this experience comes a multiplex of emotions. My opinions concerning Marva change with almost every day that passes. When I look back to what I thought the course would be before it started, I couldn’t have been more wrong. To be honest, I had no idea what I was getting myself into. And that is exactly what I thought on that first night in tent number six about 8 weeks ago. But now as I sit on my living room couch in Arad and think about everything Marva has taken me through, I realize that in the end it was exactly what I needed.

My mental strength and personal motivation during Course Marva closely resembles that of when I go on a run. Before I start a 5K run, the task seems like nothing; I see it as 30 minutes I can easily breeze through and continue on with my day. The first 10 minutes are always the worst. I think, “what the hell am I doing out here and why am I not sleeping right now?” With only a mile down, it seems as if I will be running forever, and I am already tired of it. When I hit 15 minutes, there is hope. I think, “hey, I’ve made it half way, only one half to go!” At that same moment, I look up from the ground and realize the steep incline of the massive hill I’m approaching. My heart sinks and my feet feel heavy as I brace myself for the pain of the obstacle ahead.

Finally the time comes when I only have 5 minutes left. I can see how close I am to my goal and this knowledge gives me a second wind. I suddenly pick up speed and feel as if I could run forever. I start thinking about what a good idea it was to go on a run and all that I can get accomplished now that I feel awake and energized. The rush of endorphins may be clouding my mind, but I don’t care because I made it through. And I could do it again too. My first blog post about Marva was not the most pleasant. There wasn’t a girl in my tent that didn’t cry and think about quitting during the first two weeks. By the end of the course, just like my 5K, I marched through the final ceremony with my head held high. As time passes, I remember more and more of the good things about Marva and forget the bad and you can be damn sure that I am proud of myself for finishing the course.

Rachel, on the right

A few days ago my mefakedet (commander) “broke distance” with us. In Marva breaking distance refers to the moment at the end of the course when the mefakdot (commanders) finally smile at us and talk to us as friends instead of commanders. This is the moment we realize that these robots who have been yelling at us for 8 weeks are actually normal people who have feelings and like to joke around. For most of us this is a shocking revelation. My mefakedet’s name is Snir, and the only word I can use to describe her is adorable. She is only 4 feet and 10 inches tall, but let me tell you she has the strength of a giant. The following excerpt is from a letter she wrote to our tsevet (team) and gave us at the end of the course.

Over the last year and a half I’ve been a commander in both the Gadna and Marva. As a commander in the Gadna, I encountered mainly young Israeli youth who didn’t want to enlist but eventually will have to find themselves in the military. The main issue with them and the values I chose to stress were love for the country and the fact that we have no other place in the world. Then I moved to Marva, and let me tell you, it is the complete opposite. In Marva I met youth from all over the world who came to learn about Israel and the IDF, young individuals who would have enlisted the moment they could if it hadn’t meant leaving everything they know behind, boys and girls who knew what this country means to Jewish people without me even having to explain. I marvel at this course each time anew. You can’t define Marva as “Gadna for two months”. It is a different world.  In the Gadna you get to influence the youth of Israel, but in Marva I feel like I can really change the world— because the way you experience the IDF and Israel will be passed on to your entire community. And who knows maybe people will start seeing Israel in a different light…

*Note: This letter was originally written in Hebrew and later translated into English. (Snir’s English was not the strongest)

Course Marva 123 was Snir’s third Marva course as a commander. On February 27th, the day of the final ceremony, Snir turned 21 years old. She only has about 6 months left in the army (she finishes in August). Her parents traveled all the way from their kibbutz up North to Sde Boker for the ceremony. During one of the practices for the ceremony, I had my usual thoughts that come towards the end of a run. Maybe I could enlist in the IDF. Maybe I should serve the army before I go to college. After all, I made it through Marva basic training, the hardest part of the army. I already know what I would do and which unit I would be in: a rescue paramedic in the Homefront Command unit. But something happened on February 27th that made it very clear to me why this was not the right thing for me to do.

I stared at Snir, my mefakedet, as she embraced her mother at Ben Gurion’s grave, the location of our final ceremony. Snir introduced us (the tsevet) to her mom, and we all couldn’t help but say “awwww” in unison when this proud mama leaned over and kissed her daughter on the cheek. I looked around and realized that my mom wasn’t there. And that’s when it all made sense. My mom wasn’t there because this isn’t my country. I’m Jewish but I’m not Israeli. If I were to join the army my parents would never be there to see me do it. They wouldn’t be proud of me the way Snir’s parents are proud of her. My mom asked me for only one present for her birthday this year which was February 26th. She asked me to blog. The best way for me to serve Israel AND make my parents proud is to do it back in the United States. In the States, I can fight for Israel in a way that is very different than serving in the IDF, but just as important for an American girl like me. So happy birthday, Mom! I’ll be home in just 3 short months, and as a lifetime member of Hadassah, a Year Course and MASA graduate, and a freshman at UNC Chapel Hill, I will be eager to start fighting.

Don’t worry-I know what I am doing; I’ve been trained by the best.