Gabriela is Rebeccas niece

You arrived to us from comfy, orderly and polite Europe to the heat, humidity and density of Gush Dan, equipped with a minimum of personal belongings, a huge smile, an excess of modesty and a Rubik’s Cube. We fell in love with you from the first meeting. You came alone and managed to magnetize us to you (and in the last few weeks I came to know that many others were also magnetized to you in the same manner). You surrounded yourself with circles of friends, acquaintances and distant ones who earned the status of relatives.

We were anticipating your visits, which turned the weekends into a pyjama parties. When you excitedly shared about experiences from the army, about plans and desires to progress, develop and learn, I was excited with you and for you before every crossroads, and you had quite a few!

in the nature of the life you designed for yourself.

All the possibilities were laid out in front of you, you were blessed with a combination of European manners, courtesy, wisdom beyond your age, extraordinary intelligence, sensitivity and compassion. With all these you could have reached the sky.

You repeatedly chose the long and challenging paths without making any shortcuts: a year of voluntary service, a combat role, the Egyptian border, an officers’ course, the Lahav Battalion (cause if something, then it has to be the best and the toughest), Gaza (because it can be even harder) and up to Captain’s committee, then another nomination committee and further signature for volunteer duty. You shared with me the hesitations, difficulties and disappointments and sometimes also the helplessness. With the help of skills that are reserved only for virtuous individuals like you, you walked the challenging path that is one of the most difficult to choose, encountering opaque and unrewarding walls along the way from which you also managed to derive meaning and action.

In one of the conversations, you shared about the possibility of continuing to Captains course. Deep in my heart, I wished that you would choose to discharge, that you would navigate your skills to a Nobel Prize instead of navigating in the sands of Division 80.

You had endless possibilities, and you chose to be here, to establish yourself in the Israeli society, be a part of us. We were blessed with the “best quality”.

I’m sorry Rebecca, you were too good for us. Our society, our country is in crisis, probably the hardest we’ve ever known, and to lose someone like you is to lose hope. In dark days where there is no light, no horizon to hold on to, the thought of you, who chose to be part of the Israeli society, restores strength and hope. I wish we were worthy of you dear Rebecca, I wish we were worthy of your values, actions and contribution to the Israeli society.

Thank you for being so amazing with Yoav, thank you for devoting 100% of your free time to him on the weekends you spent with us, thank you for playing soccer with him, at the expense of the much needed sleeping hours, thank you for making him laugh and making him feel loved and important instead of regaining a well-deserved rest and thank you for entering and forever having a place in our hearts.

Margalith and Asher, our home is always open to you. Please, for the sake of Rebecca’s memory, let’s keep this beautiful connection and come, come stay as much as you want and whenever you want. Sacha and Robbert, thank you for the amazing girl you raised, for the moral and Zionist education you gave her, we had the pleasure of seeing her as a part of us.