Anzac Day — what do I think about that? Well, firstly I’m grateful, grateful to soldiers who laid down their lives for me so that today I live in peace because of their selflessness, their courage, their daring. So I am grateful, and I spend the weekend carrying thoughts of those men in my heart.

I wonder how many were fathers; I wonder how many families had to survive without a dad because of war? I wonder how many kids stood at the front gate waiting for dad to return. I wonder what life would be like if these men hadn’t sacrificed so much?

You know, that’s what amazes me. We expect men to go to war and defend our shores. The reality is those men go to war to defend their families, you and me. I wonder what they would make of today’s society, where it is common in the courts of today to see dads cut from their children’s lives. To see dads denied the right to have a continuing relationship with their own children.

It’s what they fought for, and it’s what now dads worldwide are fighting to hold on to. Not every second weekend and part of some holidays. Not 4 hours a month, but substantial quality time with their kids. Enough time to develop a relationship that doesn’t mean dad becomes a stranger to his own flesh and blood.

I wonder how many kids are waiting at the front gate for dad to return.