Loser Party

ANZAC is the Australian New Zealand Army Corp and those belonging to that Corp are remembered as the most heroic and valorous of all Oceanic men. During World War I, the ANZACs fought at Gullipolli, where they staved off wave after wave of Turkish fighters.  The stories of the Battle of Gullipolli are horrific and tragic, with men dying one upon another and piles of people pock marking the beach.  To commemorate that day, among others, Australia celebrates ANZAC Day, the equivalent to our Memorial Day.  In Darwin, the whole town shows up for a dawn service to pay their respects to veterans.  I even heard a man on the phone wake up his friend at 5am and verbally force him to come down to the Cenotaph, the local memorial spire, erected for just such an occasion.  The day is held in great reverence and brings with it many memories and special occasions, including playing Heads and Tails (it's only legal on ANZAC Day).

But one glaring fact appears to smear all of this: the ANZACs lost that day on the beach in Turkey.  Despite their great efforts and sacrifice, history records an 'L' for the Allies.  So why celebrate a great loss of life and limb that ended up having little impact on the war effort?  Who throws a party when they lose?

The damn Australians, that's who.  They don't celebrate strength (though they have it) and they don't reward bragging (though they have a lot to brag about); they honor sacrifice over victory.  This morning as the sun rose over the ocean, I witnessed an entire town stand up for character and virtue and saw them pass it on to their children though ritual, a concept ebbing away from American culture.  As my team and I laid a wreath at the base of the monument, watched by tens of thousands on tv, we had the great privilege to take part in that.  Perhaps we might remember this day and pass it on to our children though a ritual of our own, and sow the seeds that soldiers started that day in Turkey on a beach much like the one that called to us nearby.

I would encourage our readers to do a little digging of their own on both the ANZACs and the bombing of Darwin during World War II.  Their stories are as moving as our own American stories and are a steady reminder that we did not stand alone in that great fight.