Lest we forget

To some these 3 words mean a lot and to others they mean nothing. Sometimes we hear these words and forget what they are truly meant to mean. They are meant to help us remember the lives of the service men and women who over the various wars have fought to keep our country safe. It is too easy to lose sight of that and become complacent in our lives. Every year we celebrate ANZAC day in Australia and until today I will admit to becoming immune to the impact of what it all means.

This morning to help my sister out, I took her boys to school while she went to work. Had I known before I left my house last night about the ANZAC day ceremony that they were holding and what to expect I would have packed a better camera than the one on my phone. Instead I was told last night that it was happening today and that if I had nothing planned it would be worth my while to stay around for it, so I did.

While I was waiting for my youngest nephews class to open there were older students walking around offering up programs and rosemary (complete with ribbons and pins) to all the parents who planned to stay. They did so politely and were very respectful of everyone, including those who said no. You could see a sense of pride on their faces as they completed this task. That should have been my first indicator that I was likely to cry before the morning was out.

As I sit here now I can honestly say that I have been reminded on how important ANZAC day is to us as individuals and as a country. It truly was a privilege to be able to attend. It was heartwarming to see the whole school get so involved in the event and even more so to see the sheer amount of children who brought flowers in to school to lay with the wreaths. Not only that, but they were just as interested to be there as the adults were. They were silent and listening attentively. With every speaker I have no doubt that they learned something new, for I know that I did.

The reminder of the reason why we celebrate ANZAC day was so clear and to see that future generations are not going to forget our past was beyond words. They celebrated with flags, New Zealand, Aboriginal and Australian and towards the end of the ceremony they released doves.

While I could capture some of the ceremony with photos, I couldn't capture the emotions that it ripped from me, nor could I capture the music. Everyone has heard the last post before, but even now it is still one piece of music that brings a tear to my eye (some days many tears). By the time that the ceremony had concluded I put my sunglasses on to hide my glassy eyes.

I will not forget today for a long time, and I will be at one of the many dawn services come ANZAC day on the 25th April. I suspect that it will be one of many. Never let yourself lose sight of what it all means. It isn't just another public holiday. It means something to our country and those who live here.

Lest we forget.