I had to stop and think

Image walking to the Long Tan Memorial, chosen by Laura Cassell as special to her from the trip

Laura writes:

The footsteps of my Grandfather

Outside the air conditioned bus, there was the blast of hot humid air. The humidity was harsh and the feeling of being in a foreign land, away from home hit me. I had to stop and think that 53 years ago my grandfather, who had talked about this day with me, would’ve stood here in this unbearable heat, in uniform with a heavy pack and with a heavy heart after the Long Tan battle. I was now overlooking that same area. I followed the path to the cross where the rubber trees were almost an avenue of honour. The sounds of insects could be heard in the banana trees where rubber trees once stood, with thunder rumbling in the background. I walked slowly to the Long Tan cross taking all this in. I was to lay a rose in remembrance of my chosen soldier, Private Robert John Lubcke who was killed on the 2nd of July 1966.  I also put down a photograph of my grandfather David Harding and his mates who came here the next day after the battle. It is hard to imagine this peaceful area was once a battleground where blood was spilt, and soldiers were killed fighting for freedom.

The Cross is for soldiers that lost their lives at Long Tan. The emotional journey for me was to retrace the footsteps of my grandfather. To give life to the stories he had told me. To try and understand through the heat, smell and sounds that had confronted him in this place. So, I stood where he stood, looked around and remembered stories of when 5RAR returned to the rubber trees for their fallen mates, on the 19th of August 1966. I listened to the Ode and reflected on the words read out from the song “I was only 19” which was how my grandfather had described the war.