Anzac day is a day to remember. To remember those who went away, leaving their families, their community and country, to serve in war zones, risking their life and limb. Most were young and most were to die young. Nations call upon their youth to answer the call, while the older men, either military or civilian, direct their destinies. For many it was a call to adventure or let’s be frank, an opportunity to get away from an unpleasant love affair, a boring job or financial trouble. The majority enlisted because of patriotic reasons.
ANZAC Day is to remember those who served during World War I. On this day 25th April all those wars and conflicts our nation has been involved in, even before federation and after world war one, are also embraced.
So why do we remember and who do we remember? ANZAC Day for me is to remember those ordinary folk who served in our military forces and our nurses who gave so much. We remember the families whose sons, brothers, grandsons, friends and cousins who were thousands of miles away and they, not knowing what their fate was to be, suffered anguish. ANZAC Day should not be exclusively recalling the feats of those in charge like Generals Monash, Chauval, Birdwood, Blamey, etc, albeit worthy they were, but the young soldier, sailor and airman who plodded the jungles, the marshes, the seas, the skies, the deserts, the arctic ice and where ever, for they were really the ones who sacrificed themselves on behalf of others. We remember the privates, the stokers, the able seamen, the air crew, the non-commissioned officers, the lieutenants and captains who led troops while at an incredibly young age and the rate of fatalities of the latter two, per ratio, was very high. We also remember those who served in the merchant navy. Our nurses should be remembered because of their unflinching call to duty, their sense of obligation and too, their sacrifice. These are the people is what ANZAC Day is all about. The generals have their medals, their awards, their exclusive clubs, with books written about them revealing their exploits on how great they were. But it was young Johnny that really fought and made the sacrifice and if he came home at all, often he did without an arm or a leg(s) or perhaps a mangled burnt face as did our fighting airmen and certainly all with jangled nerves.
Mind you, one of my greatest heroes was a general – Sir General John Gellibrand, the highest ranking Tasmanian officer in WWI. A sign of a good general is one who looks after the welfare of his troops and Gellibrand was one of them. His concern was so great that during WWI he clashed constantly with superiors and in one incident, General Monash actually apologised to him, admitting he was right. Gellibrand’s concern for the men continued after the war, commencing what was then called the Remembrance Club, later to become Legacy.
Gellibrand would not be easy to get on with. In civilian life he again clashed constantly with those with whom he worked, but always, always, his concern was with the returning servicemen. On ANZAC DAY he marched with the men in civilian clothes much to chagrin of Monash and Chauval. In my eyes, Gellibrand was a great man who would not suffer fools easily. Oh, how we need such in these grim days – fearless and righteous leaders!
They are the ones who should not be forgotten. Many of them nameless. Many in unmarked graves in Western Europe and elsewhere, buried at sea or shot down over enemy territory. How much did their mothers and fathers, grandparents, their brothers and sisters and all those who loved them, grieve? How many ladies in black were to be seen in the streets of our cities after World War One? Three thousand young Tasmanians died in that war, not to mention the 6,000 who returned wounded.
They went away to fight for their country, their family and freedom, from the Boer War to Afghanistan and in between. We have seen, however, how fragile freedom is. It can be taken away without a flicker by the whims of those in charge, backed up by State authorities. Yes, they went away to fight for the continuation of freedoms which we enjoyed in Australia to the extent of fighting off an invading, brutal enemy – but freedom can be easily taken away. It is important, nay, imperative that we remember those who went before us to battle on our behalf and that we cherish what they believed in; freedom of expression, freedom of movement, freedom of assembly and freedom to make our own choices. We must never, never give it up easily as it seems to have happened in this modern era.
ANZAC Day. To remember those who left our shores and as distance in time increases there is the possibly that it will grow dim in our memory. To do so would be selfish to the most extreme. Today and next year and the years after, let us pass the lantern to those who follow.