Kfir Messika (pictured above; bottom, right)

I had the pleasure of meeting Kfir Messika when I traveled to Israel this summer on a program called Oranim. I think of him as the guy who on one of our many water hikes was rescuing all the girls who couldn't swim. He is friendly and talkative. He has a sense of humor and a huge, warm smile. He is in many ways a typical twenty-one year old guy. He loves the beach, mountain climbing, biking, soccer, sports, and traveling. But, he has seen things most of us could never imagine, as he spent the past three years of his life as a sniper in the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF). I asked Kfir many questions about his experiences in the army, and his answers were thought-provoking, intelligent, moving, and honest.

Kfir has lived his whole life in Israel. Born in Tel Aviv, and raised in Netanya, he remembers only good things about his childhood. "We lived by the beach. We went to the Kinneret on the weekends. We traveled a lot like most Israelis. We have so many places in such a small country so you can cross the country in nine hours and ski in the Hermon and dive in Eilat in the same day," he says.

Before the army, Kfir had a job with a "big name chef" in Israel, where he learned a lot about cooking, but at the age of eighteen, he joined the IDF. Although it is mandatory to join the army, you have the choice whether to be a warrior or a supporter, Kfir explains. The supporters have a desk job and work from eight to five. "The warriors come to the army on Sunday and fight for our country, for our friends, for our family, and come back home a month later," he says, but he makes it very clear that it is a choice. "We do it because we want to, because we choose to do it. Nobody forces us to do it."

Kfir explains his decision to be a warrior, in a selfless answer that seems rare for someone so young -- "Although I had a great job and I had a girlfriend that I loved I wanted to be a warrior. I think that it's a great honor to give your country back a little bit of what she gives you all your life, so three years to fight for my country is a great honor for me."

Kfir was a sniper in the Sayeret Givati, which is like the American Marines. In fact they practice together every two years. A typical week went like this: On Sundays he would practice with his weapons. He practiced with his sniper rifle in the morning and at night. The rest of the week he learned what to do in the operation and trained a lot with his partner. "As a sniper you need to be at your best all the time," he says, "It's a very commanding job."

Sniper is a word with many negative connotations, but one conversation with Kfir and you'll forget everything you think you know. He says, "Don't forget that although you are a sniper you are a soldier too. And it's not a white and black job. There are a lot of gray areas. For example, if your captain tells you to shoot every enemy with a gun, and then you see a twelve year old kid with an AK47, would you shoot him?"

The so-called "situation" in Israel is a touchy subject, but Kfir is open to speaking about it. I asked him what he thinks young Americans who are saturated by images of Israel on the news should know. He says, "I am sure that you read and hear a lot of things about the 'situation' in Israel, but the problem is that the people who tell you about it don't know nothing, 'cause they've never been in the real Gaza streets. I saw terrorists running with babies in their hands. I saw them trying to pass the border in an ambulance with injured people inside, you know from where the "Hamas" [the Islamic resistance movement] take most of their men. They go to hospitals and talk to people with H.I.V. And from where do you think that they have power, food, water... everything we give them, even some of the pistols they have we gave to their police five years ago (when it was quiet in the area), and now they are killing us with our weapons. I can talk so much about this subject, but the most important thing is don't believe things that you can't see with your own eyes."

When asked what he gained from being in the army, he gives a somewhat surprising answer, "I think that the army helped me to take things in the right perspectives. Try to imagine a nineteen year old boy fighting for his life. I saw some of my best friends getting injured in front of me, so it gives you a better outlook on life, about what is a real friend. If your best friends are the people that you trust the most, try to imagine that my best friends saved my life several times. We have a saying, 'Would you take a bullet for me?' I know that I will take a bullet for my friends and I know that they did for me."

At the age of 21, Kfir has finished his term in the army, and is ready to begin his life. He says it is awesome to be a civilian, and is excited about university and a job, what he describes as a normal life. Although it is a great relief to be done, he adds that "sometimes at night you miss the action and the thrill."

He just finished a bartending course and right now is working in a pub. In Israel, it's a tradition that once you finish the army you go for half a year or more to South America, India, or Thailand to search for yourself. Kfir plans on using the money he makes in the pub to travel to South America and after that he wants to study.

- Linda Buchwald, Associate Editor