Perhaps you are one who wants to do more than his share at Tel Hai this summer, that is, become a madrich. Well, if you are new at this game, let me give you some timely advice.
First of all, you must take into consideration your age. If you want to work with solelim whose ages range from ten to twelve, we suggest that you yourself should be at least thirteen so that they can look up to you to some extent. The same goes for the tzofim who are usually thirteen and fourteen. That means that you should be about fifteen, or if you wish to give a sage-like appearance, sixteen. The bonim, as our beloved rosh Kvutza, Harry, once said, are anywhere from fifteen to twenty-five. But for them it does not matter how old you are because the bonim never pay any attention to madrichim anyway. They consider them a mere formality.
So you think you are old enough for one of these age groups. We shall therefore proceed to tell you just what will be expected of you in each age group. We'll start out with the solelim. and get them off our minds (as though that's even vaguely possible. To work with these little rascals, you must have a strong constitution and a stronger left hook, the endurance of a cross-country track star, and the patience of a saint. You must have the fleetness of a greyhound each evening to join the merry chase that occurs when it is time to put them to bed. A liberal education is a handy thing to have, too, for you must know everything from the latest processes of making apple butter to the social status of the Jew in Zululand. These little intellectual fiends can ask more brain-teasers in a day than Dr. I. Q. does in a year. Also, you bad better stock up on vitamin pills, for these charming youngsters have their own ideas of how to spend a restful afternoon.
Now for the tzofim. These animals are slightly less energetic, all their vitality having been exhausted in their rolelim days, though they are still more active than their mild looks indicate. But the modern tzofeh brings new problems with which the madrich can expect to cope. For example, you will be requested to solve all their little affaires de coeur, and if you don't think that kids of this age are concerned with such problems, you have underestimated the wide range of their capabilities.
You will be subject to nightly outpourings of their hearts and will be forced to promise them you will try to get the work committee to put them on guard or kitchen duty with their current crushes. Yes, being a madrich of tzofim is a splendid occupation, that is, if you are interested in practicing some early teen-age psychology.
And finally, there are the bonim. These languid creatures have neither the solelim spirit nor the tzofim trust and confidence in a madrich. They thrive best if left to themselves to eat, sleep, gossip, and go on night watch. They are not antagonistic to culture and education-the only reason for their non-attendance at discussions is evidently that they know it all. And so, while a guest speaker sits under a tree talking to the few staff members disguised as bonim to save the reputation of the camp, you may be sure that the bonim are lounging comfortably in their tents and cabins holding discussion of their own-of a different sort, however.
Likewise, their non-appearance at work does not mean that they are lazy. Oh no! The bonim are of the opinion that work was created to give the solelim and tzofim a chance to work off some of their excess vim and vigor. On the whole, madrichim. will find the bonim a group of sophisticates who have reached the stage in their development when they come to camp merely from force of habit.
And now, dear prospective madrich, if you reach the end of the day a fairly sane person, you will be required, after everyone else is in bed, to attend a staff meeting. These very exclusive affairs can do wonders for the worst case of insomnia. Two persons are appointed, in two-hour shifts, to rotate about the room pricking the madrichim with pins, and they do quite a bit of hurrying about in an effort to keep at least three people awake at all times.
If you do not fall prey to the sandman's charms, you won't be able to keep your mind on the meeting anyway. You'll keep wondering if the cabin that's doing all the yelling is yours, and when you're going to prepare the discussion you have to lead tomorrow morning, and when the darn meeting is going to end. Finally it does break up, but only on the condition that it be continued tomorrow when everyone will be fresh as a daisy.
After such a fatiguing meeting, one needs little convincing that a post-midnight snack is in order, and all troop over to the dining room, loudly shhh-ing each other although it's quite obvious that the whole camp is still awake.
Jeannie Reisapfel, 1942