The Times has been provided with four poignant photos captured at this year’s Anzac Day Civic Service and Parade in Howick on April 25 by 15-year-old Pakuranga College pupil Aarav Gupta.
The keen photographer has provided a description of each image below.
White crosses with red poppies
The first thing you see is the bright red poppy, standing out against the black and white background.
Rows of white crosses stretch across the field, each carrying a name.
Too many to count. Too many to remember. But every cross shares one thing: a single red poppy pinned to the top.
That one symbol ties all these brave souls together. It’s what keeps their memory alive not just for a year, or 100, but forever.
Because the red poppy stays with us, and this small flower carries the weight of so many lives, reminding us what they gave so we could live in peace today.
Flying Warbirds aircraft
You hear them before you see them, that deep rumble slicing through the stillness.
Then they appear, flying overhead in perfect formation.
In 1915, planes like these ruled the sky. Back then, they carried young soldiers toward the unknown.
Toward war. Now, they fly not with weapons, but with meaning.
For a few seconds, they connect us to those who never returned. You imagine the pilots of the past, staring out at the same clouds, hearts full of fear and courage.
It’s loud, it’s fast, and then … it’s gone. But in that moment, the sky becomes a message.
A final salute from then to now.
Photo of teenager praying
This conveys a lot of emotion. A teenager like me, like all my friends, praying at the Anzac memorial.
Remembering something he never knew, not knowing the names and stories yet, understanding the importance and weight they hold.
The green tint, portraying the photo like a memory, faded and timeless.
It shows how some things we shouldn’t ever forget, how some things should be remembered, even by those who never knew.
The Cenotaph and wreaths
Numerous wreaths; from different schools, different groups, and different people.
Each one made with its own flowers, its own ribbon, and its own message.
But every single one is there for the same reason: to honour the brave soldiers who gave everything so we could be here today.
Each wreath might just look like paper or plastic poppies loosely placed but that couldn’t be further from the truth.
Each wreath holds hours of effort. Each wreath left an impact on the person who made it.
Each wreath shows someone who chose to care, to stop, to remember.
And each wreath, in its own quiet way, stands for something far bigger than just a wreath.
