My Grandfather served in World War 2 in Papua New Guinea. He hardly spoke of the war. Sometimes, brief descriptions would fall from his lips, but he mostly danced vicariously around the subject. He belonged to a generation whose wild and free years of early adulthood were set aside in order to respond to a darkness that threatened not just Australia, but the world. It affected Those on both sides of the war, some were drawn into it, others opposed it to the very end and won for us our freedom. They have given us courage to stand up against the darkness we face today.

Thank you, Anzacs. For your sacrifices, your offerings, your love.

And in the spirit of Anzac, to every person who has stood up when someone else has forced them down, and then stood up for someone else; to those who give of themselves for the freedom of another – the single mum who works around the clock, the father who sacrifices and comforts, the social worker who sits with lost souls through the night, the artists who give expression to our heartaches and hopes, to the lawyers and politicians who work tirelessly for your people and nations, to the teachers who see the best in their students, to the policemen who protect, to the doctors who investigate and listen, to the friends that reach out and give, to the brothers and sisters that never give up – to everyone who has a bit of that Anzac spirit beating inside of you – Thank you.

Thank you for offering your lives and freedoms for the sake of others.