It is hard to say farewell to the desert. No matter how accustomed we are to the city, we are at heart a desert people. In the desert we heard God’s voice, in the desert we learned the commandments. As the sun rose this morning I took a walk to the edge of the maktesh to give my personal farewell. The 
desert sun already shimmered over the mountains and a herd of ibex, with their curving shofar horns, surrounded me on the summit. Farewell. I will carry the wilderness with me. 
We traveled west towards the Mediterranean on a lovely warm and clear day, and north towards Tel Aviv. Just outside Tel Aviv we had an amazing experience at an army base. We arrived at the gates of the Zeferin IDF Ordnance School. Three young soldiers got on our bus – Craig’s eyes lit up
as he realized that one of the young ladies was a California girl from San Diego. Danielle was a recent graduate of USC. She immediately made aliyah and began serving in the army. That personal connection began what continued to be a very personal exchange.
We began with a standard orientation that explained the purpose of the school – a technical training camp that gives the support corps their skills to maintain all the machines and weaponry of the army. The school has some difficulty attracting candidates. Ordinance is not the most popular corps among young Israelis who dream of more exciting army placement. None the less, as we learned, the support services are vital to the work of the army and there is great pride in what they do.
After our orientation we had a special surprise – we had just walked over to a large work shed when, with a roar, a large Merkava 4 tank, one of the most advanced in the world, rolled up in front of us. After a few impressive maneuvers, including a smokescreen and its rapidly turning turret aiming the barre
l right at us, the soldiers brought us around back and gave every one of us a chance to poise for pictures in the tank, and have our own Michael Dukakis moment. We also had time to have personal conversation with the soldiers. Many are very young and our group was impressed with their youth, be
auty (Janice!) and energy.
Sharon told us as we left that a group of young Israeli soldiers had came up to her and asked in Hebrew why we bothered to come to an army base – why would a group from America care what they were doing. Sharon explained that when people ask questions about
what is going on in Israel, we are the ones who have to explain. This seemed to be something of a revelation to them and, as Sharon believes, their thinking is changed. Israel and Diaspora, we are connected.
In private conversations I gained the impression that the Israeli military is preparing itself. They have learned lessons from the experiences of the Lebanon war, but feel the situation is growing more unstable. Now we have faces and stories to go with those soldiers who carry the burden in any military conflict. We can imagine fresh young faces like those we met today, facing terrible conflicts, and our hearts sink. We are connected.
From the army b
ase we come to Old Jaffa, the ancient port city from which the biblical Jonah set off before being swallowed by a “great fish.” Today it is filled with art galleries and features a spectacular view of the Mediterranean and the Tel Aviv beaches. We had some free time to wander the streets, paved with stones like Jerusalem.
From Jaffa we drove a short distance to the Etzel Museum. The Etzel (I.Z.L. - Irgun Zva Leumi – or National Military Organization, often referred to simply as the Irgun) was an underground fighting force during the British Mandate era. My father, may his memory be blessed, was an officer of the Irgun.
In the small museum we met a former Irgun fighter named Yosi Nachmiash. He was a vibrant 82 year old
man who told absolutely riveting tales of the operations he was involved in. A former member of the British military during WWII, he was perfectly posed to exploit his knowledge of British army procedures and his command of English to “liberate” weapons and rescue captured comrades during the years before the state was established. Everyone enjoyed his almost cinematic storytelling. We could picture the dashing young man and his brave exploits. I am reminded that this generation will one day be gone – a point that was driven home to us as he left us early to attend the funeral of a former colleague – and feel privileged to have heard his story from his own lips.
Back on the bus I told the group that my father, who was in the Intelligence unit, spoke very little about his Irgun days – except when we were visiting Israel. He felt that there were secrets he had sworn to that, unlike the operations Nachmiash described, are not in the public record. However he was always clear that, unlike terrorists, the targets of the Irgun were always military and that supreme efforts were made to preserve civilian life.
After dipping our toes into the Mediteranian, we traveled north from Tel Aviv to Haifa
. The lovely modern hotel where we are staying overlooks the port and offers a spectacular view at night. As we walked to find restaurants for dinner, Sharon oriented us by making a map of Israel out of Adam. With the youngest member of our group well humiliated, we were able to have a lovely evening out.
In the heights of Haifa we reflect on the lessons of the desert. We have gained strength – as has Israel. Now the question is how we use our power.
desert sun already shimmered over the mountains and a herd of ibex, with their curving shofar horns, surrounded me on the summit. Farewell. I will carry the wilderness with me. 
We traveled west towards the Mediterranean on a lovely warm and clear day, and north towards Tel Aviv. Just outside Tel Aviv we had an amazing experience at an army base. We arrived at the gates of the Zeferin IDF Ordnance School. Three young soldiers got on our bus – Craig’s eyes lit up
as he realized that one of the young ladies was a California girl from San Diego. Danielle was a recent graduate of USC. She immediately made aliyah and began serving in the army. That personal connection began what continued to be a very personal exchange.We began with a standard orientation that explained the purpose of the school – a technical training camp that gives the support corps their skills to maintain all the machines and weaponry of the army. The school has some difficulty attracting candidates. Ordinance is not the most popular corps among young Israelis who dream of more exciting army placement. None the less, as we learned, the support services are vital to the work of the army and there is great pride in what they do.
After our orientation we had a special surprise – we had just walked over to a large work shed when, with a roar, a large Merkava 4 tank, one of the most advanced in the world, rolled up in front of us. After a few impressive maneuvers, including a smokescreen and its rapidly turning turret aiming the barre
l right at us, the soldiers brought us around back and gave every one of us a chance to poise for pictures in the tank, and have our own Michael Dukakis moment. We also had time to have personal conversation with the soldiers. Many are very young and our group was impressed with their youth, be
auty (Janice!) and energy.Sharon told us as we left that a group of young Israeli soldiers had came up to her and asked in Hebrew why we bothered to come to an army base – why would a group from America care what they were doing. Sharon explained that when people ask questions about
what is going on in Israel, we are the ones who have to explain. This seemed to be something of a revelation to them and, as Sharon believes, their thinking is changed. Israel and Diaspora, we are connected.In private conversations I gained the impression that the Israeli military is preparing itself. They have learned lessons from the experiences of the Lebanon war, but feel the situation is growing more unstable. Now we have faces and stories to go with those soldiers who carry the burden in any military conflict. We can imagine fresh young faces like those we met today, facing terrible conflicts, and our hearts sink. We are connected.
From the army b
ase we come to Old Jaffa, the ancient port city from which the biblical Jonah set off before being swallowed by a “great fish.” Today it is filled with art galleries and features a spectacular view of the Mediterranean and the Tel Aviv beaches. We had some free time to wander the streets, paved with stones like Jerusalem.From Jaffa we drove a short distance to the Etzel Museum. The Etzel (I.Z.L. - Irgun Zva Leumi – or National Military Organization, often referred to simply as the Irgun) was an underground fighting force during the British Mandate era. My father, may his memory be blessed, was an officer of the Irgun.
In the small museum we met a former Irgun fighter named Yosi Nachmiash. He was a vibrant 82 year old
man who told absolutely riveting tales of the operations he was involved in. A former member of the British military during WWII, he was perfectly posed to exploit his knowledge of British army procedures and his command of English to “liberate” weapons and rescue captured comrades during the years before the state was established. Everyone enjoyed his almost cinematic storytelling. We could picture the dashing young man and his brave exploits. I am reminded that this generation will one day be gone – a point that was driven home to us as he left us early to attend the funeral of a former colleague – and feel privileged to have heard his story from his own lips.Back on the bus I told the group that my father, who was in the Intelligence unit, spoke very little about his Irgun days – except when we were visiting Israel. He felt that there were secrets he had sworn to that, unlike the operations Nachmiash described, are not in the public record. However he was always clear that, unlike terrorists, the targets of the Irgun were always military and that supreme efforts were made to preserve civilian life.
After dipping our toes into the Mediteranian, we traveled north from Tel Aviv to Haifa
. The lovely modern hotel where we are staying overlooks the port and offers a spectacular view at night. As we walked to find restaurants for dinner, Sharon oriented us by making a map of Israel out of Adam. With the youngest member of our group well humiliated, we were able to have a lovely evening out.
In the heights of Haifa we reflect on the lessons of the desert. We have gained strength – as has Israel. Now the question is how we use our power.
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