October 23
We arrived to base in the early afternoon on Sunday and immediately were summoned to an emergency meeting. Word was that a war with Syria and/or Lebanon was about to break out (all of this in practice of course). We checked our emergency gear and prepared the tanks as well with various necessities for a battle, checking if they were in good condition as well. We entered into a lesson and were asked to write on a piece of paper what was our dream for life. Then, the madness started. One of our officers ran in screaming “HAKPATZA!” meaning jump literally but more accurately pointing to the fact that we were going to “war.”
A full out sprint was on to bring our things to the tank all in darkness as the power was turned o ff in order to turn up the simulation. Everyone was running around like chickens without their heads, but once we finally got organize and threw our things into the tanks, we started off on a journey to where we would be holding the battle line. This was the start of a war with the Syrians and we would have to use everything we learned up until now to finish the fighting.
We finished with the tank very late into the night and hardly slept, waking up before the sun because the enemy could begin tracking us by that point. We threw a camouflage net over the tank and set it up so only those next to the tank could understand what it trust was and talked about our plan of action. From one battle front to another, we had a lot of work to do and not much time before our next planned stopping point. Successfully, we destroyed many of their armored corps, infantry, and anti-tank missile power in advancing through Syria. We made it to a place to refuel on gas, food, and water, received wishes of good luck from Israeli children for defending their freedom.
It was on to a fight with our neighbors to the north, Lebanon, which was a whole different ball game. The terrain is very mountainous, creating a difficult strategy for tank fighting, not to mention the fact that it was their home, not ours. We always had to be on the lookout for anti-tank missiles and infantry who would be hiding in the mountains. One thing I learned from this experience is how aware one has to be all the time with one’s surroundings. We trekked through the hills, spotting enemy targets, one after another. As nightfall set in, the enemy had surrendered and we were victorious; we celebrated with a traditional Israeli dish, “Poika” (basically mix anything and everything to make a stew) and enjoyed each other’s company inside of our platoon. In addition, I celebrated my one year of being in the army and halfway point of service. This one year had flown by so fast and looking back at it, particularly during this week’s tasks, confirmed my decision. I was learning how to defend the people and country I love (plus making fun of the other guys who were doing three years made it that much better). It ended up being a tiring week, but the experience was one to remember and a great learning experience for my time to come as a commander. The next two weeks ended up being my own way of celebrating.
I was released from the army for two weeks for my cousin’s wedding in New York, something we had been looking forward to for years. I had enough time to make it back to Arizona as well, spending time with family and friends, seeing my old students, and showing my pride for who I had become in such a short time. I was no longer just David to them – every time I was introduced I was David, almost tank commander in the Israeli army. It really hit me that I had taken a completely different course in life and it was one people really admired for the decision and strength it took. I then set out to an American experience I had not done in quite some time and that was a Yankees game with my dad. It was a playoff game nonetheless in freezing weather with wind and rain. It always bonds us together in outings such as these, especially if your team wins in thrilling fashion (like they had the last sporting event we had gone to together, the Superbowl). Times like these make you simply happy because you do something with someone you love and they are happy as well.
The wedding was simply perfect as I saw many family members I rarely have the chance to see and of course we partied like only our family knows how (you know, five hours straight of dancing – so good the band was even impressed). After then being able to see more great friends in New York and supposedly sound like an Israeli and dress like one too (who could remember anyways that café in English is very much accented on the é part), I headed home to Israel. I had two weeks ahead of me before I would become a commander of the army of the people that I love. I drank my Dr. Pepper and ate a doughnut before the plane departed, but I knew where I belonged, already anticipating the hummus. And as I passed through passport control with ease using a fingerprint system because of my Israeli citizenship, I smiled. I was home and I was ready to go back to work.
