Just over a week ago, my father-in-law, Gerald Lebor, passed away shortly after his 94th birthday. He was a charming, cultured man, who knew so much about such a wide variety of subjects. He retained his independence and enjoyment of life right to the end.

Gerald’s death is the end of an era. He was a link to my late parents, and he was my children’s last surviving grandparent. As a family we already feel the void left by someone who was a major part of all our lives for such a long time - I had known him for 36 years. Although we feel immensely sad that he is no longer with us, we are grateful that he had such a rich, full life. It is a privilege for Laurence and his siblings to be able to mourn with a sense of gratitude along with the sadness.

In stark contrast are the feelings we are experiencing as a nation here in Israel today on Yom Hazikaron, Remembrance Day for – to date – the country's 22, 684 fallen soldiers and terror victims. Their deaths were tragic and untimely, and for their families the grief is unbearable and unending.

At the best of times it’s very hard to make the switch from sadness to celebration as Yom Hazikaron becomes Yom Ha’atzmaut. This year we’ll give the public revelry a miss and just have a quiet l’chaim at home to mark Israel’s 62nd Independence Day.