Seven, GO!

Hey everyone,

Here is the latest installment. Life continues in the crazy IDF. The past two weeks have been a whirlwind of army life. We have shot a lot in the shooting range. We have progressed into shooting under time limits, night conditions, and a lot of practice. We have had additional krav maga sessions, learning and practicing for the army's fitness test, called the bochan maslul which includes jumping over walls, climbing up ropes, and crawling. Because I am a big guy, its really hard for me so I hope I will pass it.

We also have to constantly be checked on our preparedness for real time situations. This means that our magazines have to be filled with bullets, full canteens of water, etc. We are given an order called Seven, go! This means we have to put on helmets, knee pads, vest, unfold a stretcher, make a list of everything that is missing, clean our weapons, and do this all in seven minutes.

We have done two more marches, 6 KM and and 7 KM+1. The +1 means how many kilometers we do with the stretcher. Since I am the heaviest guy, I was carried on this march for the last kilometer. It was fun to be on the stretcher and watch the stars as my guys huffed and puffed carrying me!

In the past two weeks, we also had our swearing in ceremony at the Kotel. This is where you swear to defend the country. I had the best surprise of my life because the Sunday before the ceremony my father surprised me by buying a last minute ticket and coming. The army gave me a couple of of days off and I was able to show my dad around my kibbutz and tour with him. The visit recharged me and also reminded me of just how much I miss my family.

Well, army life continues and we slowly continue to get educated and transformed from boys into soldiers. The guys in my company are incredible except for a couple of idiots and I am enjoying my time there.

I am sorry I don't get to post too often, its just that i have such little free time. I will do my best to keep updating you.

N