Last to Leave
Summary
This poem commemorates the ANZACS who lost their lives fighting for Australia in Gallipoli. In the first stanza, the poet describes the dead, unremembered soldiers with no mourners. In the second stanza, the poet, Leon Gellert, observes his surroundings, and finally mentions the dead soldiers, sleeping.
And the Band Played Waltzing Matilda
Summary
In the first stanza of the poem, the author states how he lived before the war, until he was conscripted into the army. However, when he arrived at Gallipoli, the Turkish army were already waiting for him and his troops, and decimated them completely. He continued fighting for ten weeks until a Turkish shell obliterated his legs off. He was returned to Australia due to his wounds. However, when he arrived, no one cheered for him and his maimed comrades. Finally, years pass, and old war veterans are marching in parades. However, the author is concerned that when the veterans die, that the memory will die also.
Cricket Game at Gallipoli
Summary
The video was about how ANZAC spirit continues to live on today, albeiit in a different sense. The video was revolved around a staged cricket game that occurred in Gallipoli on the 17th of December, 1915. The game was staged to ensure the Turkish opposition believed that everything was fine, to lower their gaurd. However, the cricket game was more than a mere ploy, for it displayed the mateship that existed between the ANZACs, and this mateship still continues to exist. A cricket team re-enacted this scene, and gained a spiritual understanding of the ANZACs. This enabled them to compare the similarities and differences between their sport and the actual war.