Now this is being optimistic, or masochistic, depends who is saying it 

But to continue the Kibbutz saga….. Like I said, we didn’t have any toys, but we didn’t even know this as we had the whole of nature to play with. Our favourite game was soccer, or else!  Those who didn’t love the game, or were no good at it, were excommunicated!!  Children’s world can be very cruel, but I was fortunate enough in two ways. First I was pretty good at soccer and second, I was a tall child and that put off anyone who liked to get his way through physical persuasion !

Our toys were sticks and stones, wires, rubber tubes, tins, rope  and planks of wood. I remember all these natural toys with a warm feeling. The games we played were self invented out of neccesity and today I wish I had recorded all these games, as they were so much fun.

I had my personal games too. They were mostly imagination-based. I could lie down in the grass for hours looking through the “jungle” from ground level. I could lose myself in there, and often did. The adventures I had in that imaginary land filled my time so much. I was never bored. A little stone would turn into a dog while a small rock would be a dynasoure. Blocks of wood were the transport I rode around in. I even used live players in my games. Such were caterpillers and spiders, wasps and other creepy-crawlies. Everything was quite. That was the unique way my fantasy land “spoke” to me. Silence was so strong. It was real loud!

Some of our games were not so much fun. Such was the pinching competition where we were split into two teams. The rules were simple: we pinch each other till one gives up. The winning team is the one with the last person to survive all thaht pinching. We had a lot of explainng to do when the grownups asked us about the black and blue marks.

I don’t think they ever found out.

Soccer was the favourite, like I said. It was a cruek game for us. If you didn’t play well, you would get your batteries charged by the other kids stoning you! Yes, it was the dark side of our childhood. I remember my soccer boots were worn out after a time and the “powers that be” decided that was through neglect. I was bigger than the guys who were doing the stoning so they didn’t do that to me. They were afraid, as cowerds usually are. They found a more effecient way. I was kicked off the time. No one was alloed to have anything to do with me. Not even talk to me. The silent treatment was very effective. I remember wishing they would just hit me like they did to the other, smaller kids.

Don’t get the wrong impression though. I had  agood childhood and this was just something we had to endure. The silent treatment lasted a day or two, sometimes more and at one time it lasted 3-4 months!! But usualy I was “in”.

The highlight of our activities was when we played against our parents, who by then were growing their bellies. This gave us a good chance of winning and when we did, it was celebrations all day!!!

One thing I never mentioned. Girls were a no-no! We didn’t play with them, didn’t speak with them and were very concious of their “invisability” in our lives….. If a girl talked to a boy, he would never live it down!  Did we miss something?  Well, the birds and the bees is something we learned about at a much later time in our lives.

To be continued . . . . . . .

A simple explanation would be, a community of people living together, sharing what they have, living as equal as humanly possible. A general meeting makes all the decisions and each member of the community has an equal vote on any issue.

“To each what they need, from each, what they can” was the main theme in this way of life.

Did it actually work?

I guess that depends on your outlook and definition of this way of life. But first let me tell the story and then you can decide for yourself.

My parents, who were founders of our Kibbutz, brought me from England at the age of 5. I had no say in the matter except “Mommy…. Daddy…. I want a cookie”. What I got for my efforts was a whole new way of life. We landed at a temporary place in the center of the country and stayed there while the first group went up North to create what was later to become my home for the rest of my life. Mothers with children stayed behind. We were just two kids of my age. We were taken daily to the local kids school by horse and cart. One day The horses got scared of something, panicked and I fell on my head on the ground, which might explain a lot to those who know me   

Another day I was sitting on a mule with my 5 year old friend when a wasp stung the mule and I….yes….fell on the ground, head first……  It was getting to be a painful habit.

Meanwhile the first huts were being built so we could all join the initial group up North.

On a wintery day, we drove up in an old truck to our new home. I don’t remember much except that I found myself knee deep in mud and they had to pull me out of my gumboots, to “dry land”. My gumboots stayed behind.

As we were just two kids they got some 20 more kids from broken homes and such, to make up a group we could grow up in. At the peak we were 22 or so and that was a big group!

We lived in a communal hut with a couple of grownups to take care of us. Our parents had their home but we only visited them between 16:00-20:00. We didn’t grow up with our parents. They took turns sleeping in our communal hut, to see that we were ok. We were. I’m not sure they were though. The idea was that the community is important, more than the family. We children belonged to the whole community and just happened to have two biological parents for 4 hours a day.

Saturday was the family day. Spending the whole day with our parents was something to look forward to.

Every Friday we used to get a little bag with 7 sweets in it. One for each day of the coming week. Some years later it went up to 14 and 21 and then it was just a bag-full, it was too much to count. We weren’t bored even though there were no toys around, computers were unheard of and haven’t yet been  invented. I don’t think Bill Gates was born yet.

We had a rest period every day between 2pm and 4pm and we had to sleep! Those who didn’t were punished by having to sleep for two hours on Saturday at the expense of being with the parents. Oh, I mentioned most of the kids were from broken homes. They were adopted by kibbutz members and were as much family as possible under the circumstances.

….. to be continued ……

I’m the first kibbutz child in my village and have lived through all the stages of this special way of life: Childhood, adolesance, growing up, creating a family, children and grandchildren. The story of the Kibbutz way of life is parallel to my own. I conceder the kibbutz history, my own biography. I would like to pour it out in letters, words and sentances in this blog.  

So, first, what is a Kibbutz?  The word itself is derived from the root “to gather” and is a gathering of people who see things close enough to be able to live with each other…..;)

Kibbutz is a unique way of life found in Israel. The initial idea came about as people who survived the holocaust in Europe,  fled to what-is-now Israel. They started the state of Israel as a home for the Jewish people with the determination that the massacre in Europe would never happen again. The new-born state was invaded by 5 arab neighboring countries. The war of independance was won in 1948 and the state of Israel has been a fact ever since.

The long borders an the very few settlements made it a hugh problem gaurding the state. People were organized in groups, before they ever got to the land and were sent to newly created settlements along the long borders of the country. The idea was twofold: Settling the land and gaurding the long borders. The concept of these settlements, named “Kibbutz” was a greater success than anyone had visioned. They grew and developed into self sustained, profitable and well integrated sociaties that exist till this very day.

  …. to be continued……

I will be nesting here just as a migrating bird nests on it’s way North or South according to seasons…. seasons of my life  

After 3 posts I think the nesting period will be extended with no limits

Good day