Respectful silence –
Thoughts of war and sacrifice
Still sadly present
ANZAC Day tribute
As dawn overcomes dark night
Honour their spirit
All brothers in arms
They came from farthest places
And stood for freedom
Shoulder to shoulder
Against forces of evil –
Lasting legacy
Reflection:
Today, 25th April, is a special day in Australia and New Zealand, similar to Memorial Day in USA. Here we call it ANZAC Day, to commemorate the sacrifice in the First World War by the military forces of the Australian New Zealand Army Corps. This poem is in honour of our brave service personnel in all fields of conflict in which they have served.
As a side story, today I got chatting to a young German visitor to my city, Dunedin, in southern New Zealand. He was travelling by himself and I offered to show him some of our beaches and wildlife – the albatross colony and the sea lions. I explained to him why the streets were quiet and the shops were closed, due to it being a public holiday commemorating our war dead. Germany was our enemy in both world wars – it seemed such a nice thing to do today to enjoy friendship together in freedom.
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