Lest We Forget.
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Lest We Forget
Ode of Remembrance
With proud thanksgiving, a mother for her children,
England mourns for her dead across the sea.
Flesh of her flesh they were, spirit of her spirit,
Fallen in the cause of the free.
Solemn the drums thrill: Death august and royal,
Sings sorrow up into immortal spheres.
There is music in the midst of desolation,
And a glory that shines upon her tears.
They went with songs to the battle, they were young.
Straight of limb, true of eyes, steady and aglow.
They were staunch to the end against odds uncounted,
They fell with their faces to the foe.
They shall grow not old, as we that are left grow old:
Age shall not weary them, nor the years condemn.
At the going down of the sun and in the morning,
We will remember them.
They mingle not with their laughing comrades again;
They sit no more at familiar tables at home;
They have no lot in our labour of the daytime;
They sleep beyond England's foam.
But where our desires are and our hopes profound,
Felt as a well-spring that is hidden from sight,
To the innermost heart of their own land they are known,
As the stars are known to the night.
As the stars will be bright when we are dust,
Moving in marches upon the heavenly plain;
As the stars that are starry in the time of our darkness,
To the end, to the end, they remain.
Ode of Remembrance
With proud thanksgiving, a mother for her children,
England mourns for her dead across the sea.
Flesh of her flesh they were, spirit of her spirit,
Fallen in the cause of the free.
Solemn the drums thrill: Death august and royal,
Sings sorrow up into immortal spheres.
There is music in the midst of desolation,
And a glory that shines upon her tears.
They went with songs to the battle, they were young.
Straight of limb, true of eyes, steady and aglow.
They were staunch to the end against odds uncounted,
They fell with their faces to the foe.
They shall grow not old, as we that are left grow old:
Age shall not weary them, nor the years condemn.
At the going down of the sun and in the morning,
We will remember them.
They mingle not with their laughing comrades again;
They sit no more at familiar tables at home;
They have no lot in our labour of the daytime;
They sleep beyond England's foam.
But where our desires are and our hopes profound,
Felt as a well-spring that is hidden from sight,
To the innermost heart of their own land they are known,
As the stars are known to the night.
As the stars will be bright when we are dust,
Moving in marches upon the heavenly plain;
As the stars that are starry in the time of our darkness,
To the end, to the end, they remain.
Huge crowds at dawn services this morning, which is good to see. 120 000 at the war memorial in Canberra, where they normally get 50000.
We attended a service at a small country town on the outskirts of Adelaide - had a really nice local element with personal stories told by school kids - was very moving.
Always love the magpies and kookaburras in the background.
We attended a service at a small country town on the outskirts of Adelaide - had a really nice local element with personal stories told by school kids - was very moving.
Always love the magpies and kookaburras in the background.
When will human lives be valued enough not to be sent to places where they are going to be killed or psychologically damaged for the rest of their lives for killing others!
Why, why, why is war necessary???
Mourning for them 100 years later and all the poppies in the world are not going to make a difference - What has Australia learned from this mistake!
They are still sending young people to risk their lives in other countries! We need them to be alive, not dead heroes celebrated every year - alive!!!
Sorry I cannot get into all this remembrance bs - stop killing people!
Why, why, why is war necessary???
Mourning for them 100 years later and all the poppies in the world are not going to make a difference - What has Australia learned from this mistake!
They are still sending young people to risk their lives in other countries! We need them to be alive, not dead heroes celebrated every year - alive!!!
Sorry I cannot get into all this remembrance bs - stop killing people!
It's not about the politics or war itself. It's about the lost souls, broken families and loved ones that are now gone that were pawns in it all.
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Xenia, in another thread you said you were very thankful for the opportunities Australia has. We wouldn't have the freedom or security we enjoy without utilising our defence force. On this sacred day, let's not turn this thread into an argument. Let's spend just a moment of our time remembering those who paid the ultimate sacrifice for us, as Australia would be a very different place otherwise.
Lest we forget.
Lest we forget.
Xenia,
Whilst I agree with you that the simple fact is that no one wins in war,today we celebrate the courage and sacrifice that these young men displayed so we could enjoy the freedoms we have some 100 years later.
Personally I couldn't imagine what they went through,charging from the trenches all the while knowing that they would be killed...courage beyond belief!!
We aren't celebrating war,we are celebrating our loss of innocence..
LEST WE FORGET
Whilst I agree with you that the simple fact is that no one wins in war,today we celebrate the courage and sacrifice that these young men displayed so we could enjoy the freedoms we have some 100 years later.
Personally I couldn't imagine what they went through,charging from the trenches all the while knowing that they would be killed...courage beyond belief!!
We aren't celebrating war,we are celebrating our loss of innocence..
LEST WE FORGET
Everyone is entitled to a view point!
There are war veterans struggling financially and forgotten - if they died they would have been Heroes.
Human lives are not valued!
People are not valued for serving!
This whole hero label is to justify something that should never have been done and that is continually being done!
Can you not see.....?
I would risk my life for Australia's freedom but Stop sending people to wars in other countries!
There are war veterans struggling financially and forgotten - if they died they would have been Heroes.
Human lives are not valued!
People are not valued for serving!
This whole hero label is to justify something that should never have been done and that is continually being done!
Can you not see.....?
I would risk my life for Australia's freedom but Stop sending people to wars in other countries!
Sure, start your own thread if you want to debate war.
ANZAC day isn't about war, it's about remembering extraordinary ppl. People who built this country and make me proud to be Australian.
It's not even about ppl 100 years ago. Plenty of ppl currently putting their lives on the line today.
I completely agree. I can't get into the whole "lest we forget" thing when we HAVE forgotten. We keep doing the same thing over and over again. We HAVEN'T learned from our mistakes and we WILL continue to pay the price. What an insult to all those who have given their lives that we continue to act like war and imperialism are some small thing.
Yeah, right. Turkey was totes going to invade Australia and repress your freedoms. We only participated to appease Churchill the megalomaniac and 100 years later, we still can't be honest with ourselves about it.
I feel ANZAC day is about giving thanks to those who sacrificed in wars past, and sadly to give thanks to those who will sacrifice in the future. As wasteful as it is, there is an element of human nature that creates conflict and under certain circumstances that conflict manifests itself in war.
We see people taking advantage of others to get ahead in their jobs, love life, business. We see large corporations causing deliberate harm to others through their actions. It happens at a government level and this then sometimes becomes about power, greed and results in war. It's regrettable and as much as we may wish we'd evolved past that point, that hasn't occurred yet and I'm not sure that we'll ever become that enlightened as a species.
I understand that ANZAC day in a fashion acknowledges something abhorrent, but it's more important to acknowledge that the sacrifices made are something we should be very grateful for today.
Imagine what the world would be like had the Axis powers managed to complete and maintain the occupation of Europe 100 years ago? WWII wouldn't have happened in the way it did, but what would be the consequence of a small group of imperialists getting away with invasion on a global scale in the modern world? I don't think conflict would have ended on 11/11/1918.
What if the Gallipoli invasion had been successful? WWI might have ended sooner but this might have had other consequences that we can't fathom. Gallipoli was a tragic loss of life but we can't say those sacrifices were in vain, they likely had a direct consequence on the state of the world today.
The world today isn't perfect. Terrorism, human rights violations, ongoing wars on various scales are occurring all around the globe. There are also beacons of hope, freedom and opportunity. Large parts of the globe are reasonably stable, a lot of people live quite well and have good lives. We often (but not always) acknowledge the places that aren't as well off and try to do something about it (for better or worse).
Had it not been for the sacrifice of foreign soldiers who often ended up in unmarked graves, my life wouldn't be what it is today, it would almost certainly been far worse. There's very few people in Australia (or even most parts of the world) who might claim otherwise.
ANZAC day is generally an Australian holiday and largely unacknowledged by other countries who participated in the same tragedy. Most countries have their own day on which they give their thanks for the sacrifice of others both domestically and abroad. ANZAC day is for Australians.
Thank you to the soldiers everywhere who sacrificed so much for the lives we enjoy today. Thank you to their families who lost their loved ones or had them returned. Thank you to the Turkish soldiers and their families who also made their own sacrifices. The sacrifice of peoples lives has affected countless others for generations and further generations to come.
Even if we do eventually all live in peace and prosperity where there is no war, hunger and other atrocities, those sacrifices will have led us to that place. This should always be remembered.
We see people taking advantage of others to get ahead in their jobs, love life, business. We see large corporations causing deliberate harm to others through their actions. It happens at a government level and this then sometimes becomes about power, greed and results in war. It's regrettable and as much as we may wish we'd evolved past that point, that hasn't occurred yet and I'm not sure that we'll ever become that enlightened as a species.
I understand that ANZAC day in a fashion acknowledges something abhorrent, but it's more important to acknowledge that the sacrifices made are something we should be very grateful for today.
Imagine what the world would be like had the Axis powers managed to complete and maintain the occupation of Europe 100 years ago? WWII wouldn't have happened in the way it did, but what would be the consequence of a small group of imperialists getting away with invasion on a global scale in the modern world? I don't think conflict would have ended on 11/11/1918.
What if the Gallipoli invasion had been successful? WWI might have ended sooner but this might have had other consequences that we can't fathom. Gallipoli was a tragic loss of life but we can't say those sacrifices were in vain, they likely had a direct consequence on the state of the world today.
The world today isn't perfect. Terrorism, human rights violations, ongoing wars on various scales are occurring all around the globe. There are also beacons of hope, freedom and opportunity. Large parts of the globe are reasonably stable, a lot of people live quite well and have good lives. We often (but not always) acknowledge the places that aren't as well off and try to do something about it (for better or worse).
Had it not been for the sacrifice of foreign soldiers who often ended up in unmarked graves, my life wouldn't be what it is today, it would almost certainly been far worse. There's very few people in Australia (or even most parts of the world) who might claim otherwise.
ANZAC day is generally an Australian holiday and largely unacknowledged by other countries who participated in the same tragedy. Most countries have their own day on which they give their thanks for the sacrifice of others both domestically and abroad. ANZAC day is for Australians.
Thank you to the soldiers everywhere who sacrificed so much for the lives we enjoy today. Thank you to their families who lost their loved ones or had them returned. Thank you to the Turkish soldiers and their families who also made their own sacrifices. The sacrifice of peoples lives has affected countless others for generations and further generations to come.
Even if we do eventually all live in peace and prosperity where there is no war, hunger and other atrocities, those sacrifices will have led us to that place. This should always be remembered.
I'm glad this in never going to stop,every year it's gets bigger at the Brisbane street dawn service,"Lest We Forget"..
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yRhq-yO1KN8
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yRhq-yO1KN8
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Can you not see that Anzac Day is all about trying to redress the very things that you bemoan?
People should be valued for serving, and I think that largely, they are. I don't think it's about glorifying heroes, but about expressing our deep regret that society couldn't find a better way of resolving issues than to require that they make the ultimate sacrifice. And to thank them for being willing to make it.
You're right that we haven't learned, and continue to make mistakes. That makes Anzac Day even more important - we must remember the human toll of armed conflict, and that it has consequences that last for generations.
I don't think Anzac Day means what you think it means.
Isn't that the whole point? That we need to remember the cost of decisions to engage in armed conflict, and not engage in it lightly? I don't think anybody is suggesting that it was a good idea and that we should repeat it.cimbom said:
For my own 2 cents, the 100th Anzac Day was a little disappointing for me, and as I'm ex-military, I've gone every year for decades. When I was in uniform, I absolutely loved Anzac Day, and had nothing but positive experiences.
I finally got around to claiming my Australian Defence Medal this year, and hubby and I both wore ours for the first time this year, as we watched the local march. I confess I felt quite proud.
Only two people commented on our medals, which is fine, but what's sad is that neither of the comments were positive. One man - wearing a chest full of a deceased ancestor's medals but none of this own - said "you appear to be husband and wife but you've both got medals - what is that medal?" My husband explained it was the Australian Defence Medal and was awarded for completion of four years' military service, or an initial period of enlistment.
He didn't say "oh nice", or "thank you", or "congratulations", or anything positive, just "I wondered how you both had one", in a tone that suggested "you don't look like people who could've earned medals".
The second time, an elderly lady who had earlier been talking to her friend about how wonderful her gold card was - that she had courtesy of her husband's service - asked: "what's that medal?", and when I explained, she just raised her eyebrows. Not a single word. The expression suggested "they'll give anybody a medal these days".
She's got a gold card, I don't. She didn't serve a day! Oh well. (I don't begrudge her, or other veterans' wives, having a gold card, I'm only annoyed because she acted superior.)Yah. Rather deflating.
But screw 'em, I was chuffed, and will wear it with pride in future, and didn't let it spoil my Anzac Day. It aint a medal for being shot at, but most aren't, and hey, most people don't have any kind of medal. It was earned through honest service, and I'll be proud of it.
Lest We Forget.
At the end of the day, you signed up and on some level that means you were willing to fight for something you believe in. That is worth being proud of, as is your countries acknowledgement of that.
