Captains' Corner | Finlay Casey-Ryan, College Vice Captain
This week, I have been pondering the legacy of the soldiers and the extraordinary sacrifice that sits alongside the Anzac legend. The one word that keeps coming to mind during my moments of reflection is 'fidelity'. Words like commitment, trust and respect define fidelity. More importantly, fidelity is about walking the talk, and the young men who launched themselves onto the beach at Gallipoli with their hearts in their mouths on 25 April did so, knowing that their next step might be their last.
I implore each reader of this reflection to imagine the terror that each young man must have felt as they were commanded to storm the beach. The fidelity that each young man showed on that day astounds me. Their commitment to each other, their trust in the man next to them, and the respect and love they showed each other was inspiring. The fidelity displayed by young men like Terrace Old Boy Joseph Buchanan, who at the age of 18 enlisted for the Australian Army in 1914. The initial catalyst for his enlistment was the promise of serving his country and returning as a hero. Joseph wrote about the excitement and the adventure of travelling abroad with his fellow mates to defend his King and country. Months into his ‘adventure’, four days before Christmas, on 21 December 1915, during the battle of Romani in Egypt, the genuine horror and futility of war revealed itself to him when he was mercilessly shot and killed. Joseph Buchanan is one of 765 Terracians who have faithfully devoted their life to ensure that others can live with freedom and dignity.
This Thursday, we are not honouring war, nor are we honouring bravery. Instead, we honour the fidelity that Terrace men like Joseph Buchanan have demonstrated so that others can live in a more just world. We honour their sacrifice and pause to thank them for their decision to commit to a cause, knowing that they may never live to see the fruits of their actions. As a community, we remember those extraordinary men and women who, due to their sacrifice, ‘will not grow old, as we are left grow old: Age shall not weary them, nor the years condemn. We will remember them when the sun goes down and in the morning.