To Life!
By Moshe Katz
Jewish Krav Maga Person

October 1, 2014, Israel

To life, to life, LeChaim!

If you do not know these words, well, you should. And please see the video below.

Years ago I picked up another book on our history, Jewish history. This particular book was on the history of the Jews of Lithuania 1316-1945. Of course most European Jewish history books end abruptly in 1945.

A friend saw me walking out of the book store. "What you got there Moshe?". "Oh, depressing book, I know how it ends".

"Why? Did you read it?" I asked, "No" he said, "I don't have to".

Yes, our history is a sad one but also a glorious one. We have struggled against many many enemies. As we say each year at the Passover Seder, "in every generation someone arises to kill us, but God saves us from their vicious and bloody hands".

We survive. With half a smile.

You might say we are experts at survival. No one has survived more enemies than us.

But we are also experts at life. "And if our good fortune never comes, here's to whatever comes, drink LeChaim, to life"

We deal with whatever comes our way and we sing, "To life!"

Tevye the milkman, with half a smile and faith in God.

Our Krav Maga is about life. We want life. We do not care about the Olympics, about medals or trophies. We just want to live another day, as we always have. To live in peace with everyone.

Krav Maga is about being wise enough and strong enough to avoid a fight, if you can. Wise and strong enough to know how to handle a tough situation and how to chose the correct endings to a fight.

There is no ego. There is just a simple man raising his glass and praying "To life". We want to improve our lives, to live in peace, to be free from hatred but to know how to handle it when it comes our way and to cope with "whatever comes".

So as a new Jewish year begins we wish you all To Life! LeChaim!

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