ANZAC Day 2020; a tribute to my incredible friend, and our servicemen and women.

In the lead up to Anzac Day tomorrow, I was inspired to share a story about an incredible woman that came into my life last year, retired Military Officer of the Australian Defence Force, my beautiful and inspirational friend Emma Grigson.

Twelve months ago I embarked on a life changing program after being chosen to participate in the Sport Australia AIS Talent Program for Executives. It was an unbelievable year; I learnt so much about myself and why I am who I am, lessons about leadership that have changed me and the evolution of what I know will be life-long friendships forged with 15 incredible women who were also chosen to participate in the program, along with our brilliant facilitators Jil and Geoffrey from Artem Group.

As we headed into module two in May of 2019 we had some homework which was to interview an inspiring leader; my choice was easy, fellow program participant Emma Grigson.

I chose Emma because throughout our program I learnt a lot about courageous authenticity, a leadership characteristic that Emma has in spades. Courageous authenticity in our leadership circle profiles is described as a dimension that measures your ‘willingness, one-on-one and in groups, to take tough stands, bring up the ‘un-discussibles (risky issues the group avoids discussing), openly deal with relationship problems, and share personal feelings/vulnerabilities about a situation.” People with courageous authenticity have a high level of integrity in their communication and don’t run away from conflict; this is all Emma.

For those of you that don’t know Emma Grigson, Emma was a Military Officer of the Australian Defence Force for 18-years, retiring in 2019. After attending the Royal Military College she was selected to be a pilot, one of only two women. At the end of her training in 2004 Emma entered the Australian Army Aviation Corp and in her last day of training flew her “dream machine,” a Huey, which is a utility military helicopter powered by a single turboshaft engine, with two-blade main and tail rotors.

Emma also flew a CT4 which is an aircraft that has trained many of the top military pilots over the past decades. After training as a pilot, Emma transferred to the Medical Corp. She undertook warfare training in Malaysia and was then deployed to Afghanistan as a Health Advisor, in charge of all medical operations and logistics throughout southern Afghanistan. It was in this time that Emma spent time working with the Afghan forces, and witnessing first-hand the many women and children that were the innocent victims of the conflict.

Emma is also heavily involved in volunteering within the Veteran community, passionate about Australia becoming more aware that the face of veterans is changing, they are young and people that can make such a positive impact within our communities if given the opportunity.

Throughout my interview with Emma for my AIS homework we delved into courageous authenticity, and the conversation always steered back to Emma’s desire as a leader, to always be driven by a need and a desire to serve. Courage to Emma is a lot more humble, hidden and quiet than people think, it’s not all Hollywood bravado and ego! Being courageous is about having the ability to pursue service over self-interest.

Courage to Emma is a lot more humble, hidden and quiet than people think, it’s not all Hollywood bravado and ego!

Emma shared an incredibly emotive story with me that summed up her feelings about courage. When Emma was serving in Afghanistan she witnessed Afghani’s saving the life of an American soldier. Despite the fact that the Afghani’s knew how the American’s felt about them, they cradled his head, sang to him, whispered kind words to him and treated him; not because they were motivated by reward or recognition, but because of their sole motivation to help another human being.

This story resonated with me on such a high-level and came at the perfect time as I was working through who I wanted to be and what legacy did I want to leave? Emma taught me that my own vision and purpose for my life and my future career needed to be driven by the need to make a difference, not driven by a desire for reward or recognition; all coming back to the pursuit of service, not self-interest.

In July 2019 Emma and I shared an amazing experience together at the Australian War Memorial in Canberra, the memory of spending this day with Emma will be with me forever. Whilst walking through the dioramas of the World Wars, Emma handed me a book of poems written by her favourite poet Wilfred Owen. Whilst walking she held me and led me and asked me to read Dulce et Decorum Est. I still get incredibly emotional thinking about this moment, it was the most powerful experience to share. Tears streamed down my face as I was overcome with emotion and a far better understanding of the tragic circumstances our soldiers faced when fighting in these horrific battles.

Tomorrow, Anzac Day 2020, I will humbly pay tribute and remember all our servicemen, servicewomen and animals that have all sacrificed so much for us and I pay tribute to my friend Emma, a women who has changed my life. I will be standing in my driveway with a candle at 6:00am for you.

Here is Emma’s favourite war poem, Dulce et Decorum Est written by Wilfred Owen. Wilfred was an English poet and soldier, one of the leading poets of the First World War.

Bent double, like old beggars under sacks,

Knock-kneed, coughing like hags, we cursed through sludge,

Till on the haunting flares we turned our backs,

And towards our distant rest began to trudge.

Men marched asleep. Many had lost their boots,

But limped on, blood-shod. All went lame; all blind;

Drunk with fatigue; deaf even to the hoots

Of gas-shells dropping softly behind.

Gas! GAS! Quick, boys!— An ecstasy of fumbling

Fitting the clumsy helmets just in time,

But someone still was yelling out and stumbling

And flound’ring like a man in fire or lime.—

Dim through the misty panes and thick green light,

As under a green sea, I saw him drowning.

In all my dreams before my helpless sight,

He plunges at me, guttering, choking, drowning.

If in some smothering dreams, you too could pace

Behind the wagon that we flung him in,

And watch the white eyes writhing in his face,

His hanging face, like a devil’s sick of sin;

If you could hear, at every jolt, the blood

Come gargling from the froth-corrupted lungs,

Obscene as cancer, bitter as the cud

Of vile, incurable sores on innocent tongues,—

My friend, you would not tell with such high zest

To children ardent for some desperate glory,

The old Lie: Dulce et decorum est

Pro patria mori.

Note: Latin phrase is from the Roman poet Horace: “It is sweet and fitting to die for one’s country.”

Poem Source: Poems (Viking Press, 1921), found at www.poetryfoundation.org

Images: some of my own personal photo collection taken at the Australian War Memorial and photo of Emma serving from VeteransSA. I pay my deepest respects to the servicemen in my photos.