Written by Yifat Neuman
Translated and edited by Juliana Brown
Have you ever heard of a granny who people say is a ninja?
Yaffa Adar, grandmother to eight and great-grandmother of seven, never imagined that one day someone would write in the news that she was a Ninja Granny and a Wildcat Granny.
In her 85 years, Yaffa had managed to help found Kibbutz Nir Oz near Gaza, had worked with babies and in the dental clinic and was an inseparable part of the kibbutz landscape. What is it about her that's so special?
On Simchat Torah, dozens of terrorists invaded the kibbutz and took Granny Yaffa away with them. She definitely wasn't interested in going with them, but she had no choice. They sat her on a mobility vehicle they found in the kibbutz and drove her into Gaza.
The terrorists had cameras which they used to document everything. They even filmed Granny Yaffa and the clip was broadcast over and over on the news. She's seen sitting between two terrorists with guns and she's got a big grin on her face. She's sitting straight, with her head up and her eyes saying: I'm not scared of you!
Granny Yaffa was held in shocking conditions in Gaza; without the medications she needs and without the food she's used to eating. After 49 days on the other side of the border, Granny Yaffa was returned to Israel by the country's rescue forces, who had done so much to ensure her return.
When she arrived, she had no idea she was so famous, or that her smile had given Am Yisrael strength, as if to say: we're strong, we will win!
When she was asked where she found the courage to sit like that in the vehicle and smile, with her chin up and a mischievous glint in her eye, she answered without hesitation: "Because of my children. I needed them to know and see that I was there for them. That I wouldn't break. Be proud of me! And I really did not break. I told myself that I wouldn't let them break me and I would never give them the pleasure of seeing me scared. I didn't cry or let any tears fall."
It's no surprise that when Granny Yaffa was released from the hospital where she was treated after coming home, dozens of staff with Israeli flags cheered her on and clapped for her – exactly what a Ninja Granny deserved!
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