ANZAC day is on the 25th April. On this day we remember those who fought for Australia and New Zealand. Men and women who fought for a cause bigger than themselves. And although I do not want to romanticize war and its brutal realities, I do recognise the price they paid for those who stayed behind, and the next generations to come - namely us.
These men and women were truly leaders (although they would probably not thought about themselves in this way). Leaders in that we have followed in their footsteps. Their actions have meant that we live in the NZ we do. That we enjoy the freedoms we do (even though we sometimes take them for granted.)
In John McCrae's poem 'In Flanders fields' (put to song in the video below) we read the lines...
"take up the quarrel with our foe,
to you from failing hands we throw
the torch - be it yours to hold it high
if you break faith with us who die
we will not sleep though poppies grow
in flanders fields...."
As leaders ANZAC day provides us with the opportunity to reflect on the sacrifice and actions of those who have gone before. It also challenges us as leaders to think beyond ourselves and our own needs. To think about the legacy that we are leaving for those yet to come. In this way we honor those who carried the torch so well.
