Dawn service

ANZAC Day centenary

The one hundredth ANZAC Day was my first. I had few expectations and less consciousness as I made my way along the shore in the dark, munching an ANZAC biscuit as an improvised breakfast.

The reverence with which this anniversary is held is remarkable- thousands of people of all ages turning up before dawn to commemorate, in the words of the address, “not a triumphant victory but the sacrifice and the spirit of the diggers.” We were reminded of the ANZAC mythology, the forging of a sense of nationhood from a military reverse on distant shores a century ago and paid respect to current service men and women.

Being the centenary, we had a rendition of the New Zealand national anthem as well, while their four starred flag fluttered, or not as there was no wind, next to the Australian one. The much vaunted overnight storm had…