Australia mourns Black Saturday

One year on, horrendous loss and overwhelming gratitude were spoken of in equal measure as the communities ravaged in the Black Saturday bushfires remembered those they lost.

In Marysville, locals on Sunday gathered on Gallipoli Park where 12 months ago they had huddled from the ferocious blaze which killed 34 of their friends, neighbours and loved ones.

Over the ranges in Kinglake, where 38 people were killed on February 7 last year, 173 butterflies were released, one for each of Black Saturday's victims, to symbolise the cycle of life.

And across the state, services were held in communities such as Flowerdale, Whittlesea, Bendigo and Gippsland while many families held their own private reflections of their loved ones on razed sites that were once family homes.

The nation observed a minute's silence, while more than 2000 people attended a service at St Pauls Cathedral in central Melbourne on what has been declared a national day of mourning.

Heart-rending roll calls of the dead were read out under brilliant sunshine in places like Callignee, Marysville and Kinglake, and some survivors shared their pain.

Rod Liesfield was one, sharing his heartache at losing wife Elizabeth and sons James, 14, and Matthew 12.

He spoke of "dark days" and grief, of how his foundations were rocked "on that tragic night" and of the faith that had pulled him through.

"Losing someone you love is horrible, there's no way around it, you just have to go straight through the middle of the experience and pray that you'll come out the other side," Mr Liesfield told the Marysville service.

"Comforting platitudes are little use at those times. Joy will come in the morning but first there is the night. The last 12 months has been a lot of night."

And while there were similar stories in Kinglake, thousands of residents there also showed their thanks to the emergency services and the nation which rallied around the survivors in disastrous times.

The crowd of about 2000 at the Kinglake football ground formed a guard of honour as Country Fire Authority firefighters, State Emergency Service volunteers and other relief workers walked past to huge applause.

The uniformed emergency service workers then formed the words "Thank You" in the middle of the oval to thank the nation for its support.

Carol Matthews, who had to wait a month before she could identify her 22-year-old son Sam who died trying to save the family's St Andrews home, also thanked Australia.

"We have been overwhelmed not only by the love and support of our friends and colleagues, but also by the generosity of all Australians," she told the St Pauls service.

But she was also heavy-hearted.

"One year ago our lives changed forever," she said.

"Our son was killed by the bushfires and our memories and our house were destroyed. On that day we lost our past, our present and our future."

Melbourne Archbishop Philip Freier, however, insisted there was a future.

He said the candles lit at the service by survivors and family - many of them young children - represented each of the 100 or so communities affected by the fires and were "a symbol of light and hope for the future".

In Kinglake West, the quaint white weatherboard Uniting Church also heard a message of the future.

Minister Mark Prowse told the service the day was about remembering, but also about looking to the future.

"This morning we come and we remember what we've been through, what we are feeling like now," he said.

"But we look to the future, we look ahead and we know that life does go on."

Prime Minister Kevin Rudd, who was obviously moved when giving a reading from the bible at St Pauls, also spoke of looking to the future, while hailing the country's spirit.

"February 7 will be forever etched in the nation's memory as a day of mourning but also one of tremendous spirit and inspiration," he said in a statement.

"The tragedy brought out the best of the Australian character and inspired countless acts of bravery and generosity."

Mr Rudd said that Black Saturday showed that "when disaster strikes, we come together as a family" and February 7 would become "an important emotional reflection of the nation".

After he and most of the bereaved families had left St Pauls, some stayed on for their own private reflections.

Among them was one family which symbolised Rev Freier's "hope for the future".

In the middle of the pew occupied by the family bounced a happy, giggling baby no more than a few weeks old.