Gadna

I have just come back to the kibbutz from down south, after my week on Gadna. Gadna was set up primarily for young Israelis at about the age of 16, just before they begin their army process. It was set up to teach kids about the IDF, its roles and responsibilities. It also aims to introduce people to army life and discipline. They set aside this week especially for Garin Tzabar, to introduce us to the army we will be joining in a couple months time.

All the Garinim from across the country came to Gadna this week, and it was a lot of fun seeing the European Garin, who I hadn't seen since the seminars in the UK. 

It wasn't exactly the most challenging week - there was a lot of standing around and jogging 10 metres or so at a time. But we did go out into the field and were introduced to some of the basic skills taught to combat soldiers. All in all, I didn't take the week very seriously (none of us did) and I enjoyed being with my Garin as a tzevet, or team. 

Out in the field

That being said, it marked one more step towards my draft date. Wearing the mismatching and ill-fitting uniform reminded me that very soon I'll be wearing it for real. 

This week I have my Tzav Rishon, my first test with the army, where I will find out my profile. Will update the blog with the news....