From one Canterbury to another
24 April, 2025
I left the navy 24 years ago, and since moving home, I’ve served as the Regional Naval Officer for Southland.
Every year, I look forward to getting up early on April 25 to stand at the Invercargill Cenotaph — no matter the weather — alongside 5,000 others from our community.
I stand there thinking not just of the sailors, soldiers and aviators who served before me, but also reflecting on my own time in the Navy — the things I did, the people I served with, and what it all meant to me.
I also find myself wondering what it would be like to serve now, in today’s Navy. And I wonder, 25 years from now, who’ll be getting up early on Anzac Day to remember those who came before them?
For 20 years, my naval career took me all over the world. When I retired, I thought that was it — my sea time was over.
After so many years working on the sea, I figured I wouldn’t want to get back on a ship again.
But I had this idea that maybe I could go to sea without having to work. (Some people might say officers didn’t work anyway, but I know the truth!)
So I went on a couple of ‘‘civvy’’ cruises to try to get it out of my system. But it wasn’t the same. The Navy was still there. They don’t do it like we did.
Then, when I was asked to put the uniform back on and join a 12-day trip to the Auckland and Campbell Islands on HMNZS Canterbury, no-one could hold me back.
It was a chance to see how the modern Navy works, how things have changed — and to see if I still fitted in (many years later, with significantly less hair).
So it was with a mix of nerves and excitement in February, that I slung my kit bag over my shoulder, said goodbye to the family, and headed up the brow (gangway) to join the ship in Bluff.
And, almost immediately, walking down the passageway towards the 12-berth cabins, I felt it — a sense of coming home.
The pipes over the speakers, the uniforms, the smells, the food, and the people — it was all so familiar.
Even though I’d never served on this version of Canterbury (my HMNZS Canterbury was a frigate), I felt comfortable. I was back in the Navy.
I spent 12 days immersed in Navy life. The routines came back quickly. The navy lingo flowed freely. The crew’s quiet confidence the job would get done was infectious. The ship’s versatility was impressive, and the ‘can-do’ attitude of everyone really stood out. But the thing that struck me the most? Today’s sailors aren’t that different from yesterday’s.
Sure, some things have changed — the technology, the accommodation, the uniforms
— but sailors are still the heart of the ship — they work together to get the job done. It’s not that different from what my mates and I were doing 30 years ago.
This amazing opportunity to live the military life again, even just for a short time, gives me great heart. I’m confident that those serving today will be standing at cenotaphs around New Zealand in 25 years, remembering those who came before, and those they served alongside. They are Anzac now, and they will carry that legacy into the future.
So what will I be thinking about this Anzac Day? I’ll be thinking about those who came before me — those who gave the ultimate sacrifice, and those who came home and helped build New Zealand. But I’ll also be thinking about those who are out there now, doing the business of the New Zealand Defence Force, whether at home or over the horizon. They’re living the life that we who served before them once lived. They are our future.
You can take the sailor out of the Navy, but you can never take the Navy out of the sailor.
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