Rain adds poignancy to Last Post

A palpable sense of sacrifice settled over the Mount Maunganui cenotaph when misty rain turned into a downpour as the wreath was laid and the Last Post played at the Anzac Day dawn service.

About 2000 people crammed in to watch the parade, headed by veterans of wars that have passed into history but still reverberate with meaning.

Accompanied by a bagpiper, they climbed the path to the simple but striking little cenotaph that looks so unassuming during the day.

The weather, which could have been kinder to old bones, made up for itself by adding a special poignancy to the occasion when it counted.

There was enough clear sky to see the first fingers of the dawn pierce the gloom as the service, led by Mt Maunganui RSA president Paul Franks, began.

Retired vicar Marie Gilpin prayed that the lessons of those who gave their lives in the cause of peace were not in vain. Mr Franks then went to the heart of the Anzac message. He talked about the landings on Gallipoli 98 years ago and how a heroic failure gave birth to the Anzac legend and a legacy that would forever define Australia and New Zealand as nations.

The freedoms that people took for granted today were won at a terrible cost that must not be lost by indifference, he added.

And just as the Mount RSA's wreath to remember fallen comrades was laid by Barry Kellas and Tony Dodunski, the misty, spitting rain turned into a downpour which lasted for the fusillade, reading and playing of the Last Post.

The rain eased for the benediction and lifted, as if on cue, at the close of the service. Just as the last of the marchers retreated, Harvards arrived for a belated fly-past and the watching crowds dispersed.