By Daniel Neely and Joshua Lipchin, HDANZ Shnat 2023
How does a chanich take care of their things?
How does a chanich look after their friends?
How todes a chanich organise an event for camp?
How does a chanich care of a group of chanichimot?
How does a chanich make a life-changing decision?
How does a chanich take accountability over their kvutza?
How does a chanich have a say over Habonim Dror’s future?
How does a chanich have a say over their people’s future?
Many people ask us why we stayed. Why after all our friends left Israel due to the war of October 7th we chose to continue our messima journey. It comes down to responsibility, or excessive responsibility as George Stevens would call it. A concept where an unusual amount of responsibility is placed onto youth to empower them to care about their people and community. This responsibility starts out slow with a chanich being told to take care of themselves and their friends, then to take responsibility over the movement and the Jewish people.
When the war began, we experienced an unexplainable feeling that we couldn’t leave, a feeling of responsibility towards Israel, its people, welfare and society. Our Shnat year in Israel has taught us a lot about Israeli society, the good and the bad. We’ve been taught about our responsibility towards Tikun Yisrael, education, and the Jewish youth. When the war began we remember having an overwhelming feeling of appreciation towards everyone that went off to fight, to volunteer, to help. At the same time a feeling of guilt, guilt that we weren’t doing enough, that we had a responsibility to do more. But why, why did we have this immense feeling of responsibility over something we were never expected or encouraged to be responsible over?
This feeling of excessive responsibility is not something that comes naturally to a few special people but rather a value that the movement instils in us, that inspires young leaders and keeps the movement growing from generation to generation. George Stevens explains it, “By placing this unusual and perhaps inordinate level of responsibility on our youth, we strengthen their character, build a consciousness of the forces that shape history, and instil a sense of empowerment that can only be appreciated by those who have felt the burdensome yet uplifting power of their people’s future being placed in their hands.” This movement value of excessive responsibility gives chanichimot a platform to take on responsibility and believe in their power to actualize values,
This feeling of responsibility doesn’t make a lot of sense from the outside but in its essence is the heart of the movement. We aren’t here during a time of conflict to save the people or to solve the war, but rather to give the youth a feeling of love. A feeling that they are cared for in this world and are never alone.
We have a responsibility to spread the kindness that the movement gives us to create more kindness. We educate chanichimot with passion, love and morality with no guarantee of where they will go, or what they will turn into in the future, yet this value of excessive responsibility compels us to be stubborn enough to try.
Aleh V’Hagshem.
