There was the poignancy of long stemmed red roses spread intermittently across a shoreline on a Gold Coast beach; the haunting sounds of the Last Post and Reveille both beautiful and mournful but somehow full of grace at Melbourne’s magnificent War Memorial; bowed heads gathered under umbrellas in the light of dawn at Brisbane’s eternal flame; children marching, some oblivious as to why, but with gusto alongside generations of their elders; old coves in wheelchairs unable to participate, their chests lined with the medals they so justly deserved. All these and so much more enough to move the hardest of hearts. Though the population of Esk may be tiny compared to the thousands who lined the streets of Capital Cities or filled spaces at magnificent shrines, the spirit of ANZAC was no less felt by the seemingly record numbers who gathered under a perfectly blue sky, on chairs or under the shade of trees to attend the commemorations held at the Cenotaph at Esk’s Memorial Park on April 25th.
The march of the veterans is such
a tangible public way to pay respect and honour those who have served, and are
serving, in Australia’s armed forces.
Led by the strains of Piper Joe McGhee, this goose bump moment in Esk
heralded the moving ceremony hosted by Esk R.S.L’s sub-branch president, Rob
Rye.
Pastor Gordon from Esk’s New
Seasons Church, representatives of the R.S.L, politicians and partners, the
Catafalque Party from the 2/14 Light Horse Regiment A.M.I, community and club
members, including the Esk Community Choir who led in song; Susie’s and Maree’s
impassioned renditions of the New Zealand and Australian Anthems, the emotive
tribute by Toogoolawah High School’s Erica Bickers and Grace Jardine, families,
friends and a solemn moment during Mathew Lukritz’s bugling of the Last Post
and Reveille, all there to pay their respects and to remember the formidable legacies
from the original ANZACS - that it
didn’t matter the clothes you wore, the
colour of your old school tie, what faith or politics you might ascribe to, you
were only as good as the person next to you.
And in that most awful cauldron of war, the willingness to sacrifice
themselves gave rise to the idea of equality of all Australians, a legacy both
beautiful and powerful.
ANZAC Day is so much more than a
parade. It is a chance to learn, to
listen, to remember those who honoured us all with their service and defended
us with their lives.
By Sue Walker
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| Maree Lansdown - Australian National Anthem |
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| Susan Walker - NZ National Anthem |
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| Rob Rye |
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| Esk Community Choir |
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| Grace Jardine & Erica Bickers |
So very well done , as usual, Bob.
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