By the time you get off the ship in Haifa, you have made your decision. As a Jew and as a human being, you must do whatever you can to stop Hitler; you must find a way to fight Nazis.
That way is provided by the Haganah, the Yishuv's semi- secret military force. You learn that units from the Haganah will soon be organized into a brigade of the British army and sent to Europe to fight the Germans. A strong inner feeling makes you enlist.
In reality, the Haganah is not much of a military force when you
join. You use wooden rifles instead of real ones, and the British
won't let you train the way a real army should. They believe that a
true Jewish military force would anger the Arabs, and the British are
apparently more concerned with Arabs than with Jews. Still, it's
better than nothing, and you are proud to be with a Jewish military group.
Havlagah,
restraint, your commanders counsel, and you all practice
patience impatiently.
In May 1948, when the State of Israel comes into being, the Haganah is ready. Arab attacks nearly crush the new country, but you push them back, and an uneasy armistice is finally arranged. You and your fellow soldiers have helped make the new state a reality. This must be the reason you survived, you conclude, and the army becomes your permanent career.
END