Drew and I rose early on the 25th and went to town for the Anzac Day Dawn Service. We left home at 20 to 4 and picked up S then went to the cenotaph. The crowd built slowly and quietly; people greeted and acknowledged each other in hushed tones, footsteps crunching on the stones on the road. I stood quietly in the concrete gutter; the stars shone in the still dark sky; a gentle autumn breeze rustled the leaves on the trees and lifted the hair on my neck.

Suddenly, seemingly out of nowhere, there were several hundred people there, babies wrapped in blankets, toddlers perched on shoulders and children holding their parents' hands. The service commenced at 4.28 with a short march from the ANZ bank corner, down Patrick St to the cenotaph. It was eerie to see the group, illuminated by street lamps, snake its' way to the crowd, accompanied by a lone drummer. A sombre service followed and the haunting sound of The Last Post and Reveille rang out on the pre-dawn air. The ceremony was over by 5am; people quickly disbursed, still talking in hushed tones.

We dropped two kids home then went to have breakfast somewhere but our restaurant of choice wasn’t open – not surprising at 5am. I left Drew in town at S’s place and drove home. It was still dark when I got home so I crawled into Drew's bed and wrapped myself in his soft blue striped blanket and had an hours sleep. I woke up and had breakfast, fed the chooks and went back to town for the street parade at 9-30.

Three horses led the procession......

followed by different bands and returned servicemen organizations, followed by the schools.

Drew marched - the older students marched holding hands with a little person either side of them. It was a lovely idea and gave the school a very inclusive feel and it made my heart swell.

Once at the cenotaph a much longer ceremony that this mornings took place; a new monument to the soldiers killed in the Korean and Vietnam wars was unveiled and the names of all the soldiers from the district who have been killed in times of conflict were read out. Speeches were held; wreathes were laid. The army CMF men stood, wooden and silent, at each corner of the soldier statue. I thought I was going to faint so I walked out the front and away from the crowds.

There’s something about the Australian flag that really stirs something inside me; I guess that’s what patriotism is; it makes me proud and glad that I’m an Australian.