THE ANZAC SPIRIT: Courage, endurance, initiative, mateship

As @andor734 mentioned, yesterday was ANZAC Day in Australia, the anniversary of the Australian and New Zealand Army Corps landing in Gallipoli.

As an immigrant to Australia, it at first seemed strange to me that the country would choose to commemorate a day of DEFEAT instead of a day of victory. The ANZACs were not successful in their mission — they didn’t stand a chance against the Turks, and were slaughtered.

But then I learned that what Australia gained on that day was a sense of unity. We were a young country then, and that day on the shores of Gallipoli “marks the emergence of the young newly-federated nation on the world's stage”. This is when Australia came into its own, and when our national tone was set.

ANZAC Day is not a celebration of victory, but a commemoration of our collective Australian values, what we call The ANZAC Spirit: courage, endurance, initiative, and (above all) mateship.

I ...