It’s customary to start seeding canola around Anzac day. Well, we started ours the day before. And while most people were at a Dawn Service, this morning, I was out checking the heifers, waiting for a truck load of lambs to arrive, so they could be unloaded.
Like many families in this country, I have family members’ names up on War Memorials and I had a grandfather who came back from World War Two, irreversibly damaged.
As The Last Post played out on ABC radio, all the way from Canberra, in my paddock, at dawn, I watched a new life enter the world. A heifer had her first baby. And as those last strains echoed through the crisp morning air, this wobbly little bull calf stood up for the first time.
I couldn’t help but think this is why our men and women fought for our country. For us to be free, for us to enjoy the small things, for us to live.
The bloke who gave the address at the Canberra Anzac service said something about how Jesus gave his life for those who he loved and how the Anzacs did the same. There was nothing higher than to give your life for a mate. Well, there are many who gave their lives and didn’t know me or my family and I am forever grateful to be able to live the life which they gave me, through their sacrifice.
I will never forget them.
What are your families stories of Anzac Day?