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Anzac


hobbitt

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In Flanders Fields the poppies blow

Between the crosses row on row,

That mark our place; and in the sky

The larks, still bravely singing, fly

Scarce heard amid the guns below.

We are the Dead. Short days ago

We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,

Loved and were loved, and now we lie

In Flanders fields.

Take up our quarrel with the foe:

To you from failing hands we throw

The torch; be yours to hold it high.

If ye break faith with us who die

We shall not sleep, though poppies grow

In Flanders fields.

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" They shall not grow old , as we who are left grow old ,

Age shall not weary them , nor the years condemn.....

At the going down of the sun , and in the morning , let us remember them.

LEST WE FORGET.

Ross

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At the going down of the sun...

I crouched in a shallow trench on that hell of exposed beaches... steeply rising foothills bare of cover... a landscape pockmarked with war's inevitable litter... piles of stores... equipment... ammunition... and the weird contortions of death sculptured in Australian flesh... I saw the going down of the sun on that first ANZAC Day... the chaotic maelstrom of Australia's blooding.

I fought in the frozen mud of the Somme... in a blazing destroyer exploding on the North Sea... I fought on the perimeter at Tobruk... crashed in the flaming wreckage of a fighter in New Guinea... lived with the damned in the place cursed with the name Changi.

I was your mate... the kid across the street... the med. student at graduation... the mechanic in the corner garage... the baker who brought you bread... the gardener who cut your lawn... the clerk who sent your phone bill.

I was an Army private... a Naval commander... an Air Force bombardier. no man knows me... no name marks my tomb, for I am every Australian serviceman... I am the Unknown Soldier.

I died for a cause I held just in the service of my land... that you and yours may say in freedom... I am proud to be an Australian.

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this is where the "ode" came from

FOR THE FALLEN

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 glory that shines upon our 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 of home,

They have no lot in our labour of the daytime,

They sleep beyond England's foam.

But where our desires and 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 shall be bright when we are dust,

Moving in marches upon the heavenly plain,

As the stars that are stary in the time of our darkness,

To the end, to the end, they remain.

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today means differant things to many people for me it's time to reflect on what price was payed so we can enjoy freedom and live in australia

a sad day for me as i think about a grandfather i never met who died in burma

we shall never forget they gave there lives for our freedom

gary

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It's a heavy toll for people like me to be able to enjoy simple pleasures and our current way of life. Australian's continue to don the uniform and fight in far off shores and I for one feel a debt that I can never repay them. To those who have ever or now, wear the uniform of an Australian serviceman or servicewoman... and to their families, thank you from the bottom of my heart.

To my own family members who have done the same and those who paid the ultimate price, may you live long in the memories of us all.

respectfully and gratefully, The Slinkies

Lest we forget.

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In memory of my Dad who served in WWII

Service number: VX114045

He would have been 90 years old this year.

And my Mum who also served in WWII:

Service Number: NF466489

She would have been 86 this year.

Lest We Forget.

ps: If you want to look for your relative's service records:

Try Here

Edited by MallacootaPete
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It's a heavy toll for people like me to be able to enjoy simple pleasures and our current way of life. Australian's continue to don the uniform and fight in far off shores and I for one feel a debt that I can never repay them. To those who have ever or now, wear the uniform of an Australian serviceman or servicewoman... and to their families, thank you from the bottom of my heart.

To my own family members who have done the same and those who paid the ultimate price, may you live long in the memories of us all.

respectfully and gratefully, The Slinkies

Lest we forget.

Yourrrrrrr welcome!

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