ANZAC Day

    It is 5am, still dark, and a group of Americans (Amanda, Annie, Kaileigh, Molly), an Australian (Sam), and myself are hurtling in a taxi towards the Cairns Esplanade to participate in one of Australia’s biggest public holidays.
     ANZAC Day, which begins with a dawn memorial service to commemorate the Gallipoli (Beach) Landing April 25 1915 of WWI. It now celebrates and honors all Australian service men and women from that first war and all wars up to and including the present.
    In the pre-dawn darkness we find a spot on the Esplanade near the speakers and the band but it is already so crowded we can not see them and can only listen. The bats are squabbling in the trees behind us and the occasional birds begin their dawn chorus. There is a chilly breeze of the ocean, adults are milling about looking for the right spot and children are wiping sleep out of their eyes; the young ones wondering why they have to be awake and outside so early.
    Finally, the dawn service begins.
First, is the history of ANZAC day. The word ANZAC stands for the Australian and New Zealand Army Corps, and was a nick name for these forces. Like many forces in WWI, “the war meant to end all wars”, the ANZACs that participated in the Gallipoli Landing were proud of their country, courageous, and young. Some had even lied about their age in order to enlist. While, militarily, the Gallipoli campaign was unsuccessful it stuck in the hearts and minds of Australians.
    After a reminder of the history, a series of speakers begin who succinctly describe the meaning of ANZAC day and the importance it plays in the lives of Australians.These speakers include high schoolers, politicians, and representatives of veterans groups.
The sky is beginning to lighten at this point and the birds’ chorus becomes more insistent. The speeches are followed by the band and a high school student performing “Abide by me”, which seems to be the traditional hymn for this occasion. The audience was asked to join in, but as the tenors beautiful voice floats into the air everyone, even the fussy toddlers, goes quiet.
    Next, comes the laying-of-the-wreaths on the memorial. From where we are, it is nothing but a long list of people and organizations that wish to let veterans and those serving know that they are remembered and that the wreath-layers are grateful. Color if not true light, really begins to seep over the mountains. It turns the sky into a blue-pink water color, swirling, changing, a palette almost about to spill.
    When the wreaths are done, there is a minute of silence, and then they play the Australian national anthem, “Advance Australia Fair”, and there is a return of the tenor. This time the crowd sings with him a bit more.
    By the time it is over the sun is coming up, clouds are moving in, and the animals begin their day.
    Latter there is a Salvation Army Service (much more religious) and a veterans and service member parade. They hand out plastic poppies and people wave tiny Australian flags.
    Ceremonies, like the dawn service, are carried out every year in nearly every town in Australia, in a solidarity of solemnness rarely experienced in the United States. ANZAC day is not an excuse for excess in food, drink, or partying, but instead dedicated to a moment in history and all people of Australia. Here the 25th of April marks both sacrifice and thankfulness with a tinge of palpable sorrow that war is still a necessity of the world.