But it is easy to become complacent. We complain about "first world problems" all the time.
LAST week I walked through central Bendigo asking people the question: What does Australia Day mean to you?
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Student Riley Brennan, 16, gave this answer: "It's about reflecting on what Australia's done for me and how it will change in the future."
This statement filled me with hope that, as long as the younger generation (myself included) understood how lucky we were, Australia would continue to develop and improve for the better.
This sentiment is what drives those who are honoured each year with an Order of Australia medal.
It's the mentality that drove ex-Bendigo mayor Maurice Sharkey in years of service to the community.
"I feel very fortunate to live in a community like Bendigo...I have never taken it for granted," Mr Sharkey said.
But it is easy to become complacent. We complain about "first world problems" all the time.
And yet many of our complaints are fickle while ISIS cripples Iraq and Syria, the Ebola virus claims lives in West Africa, Boko Haram rampages through Nigeria and Russians and Ukrainians remain locked in fighting.
We do have problems, but the basic freedoms and peace we enjoy should not be forgotten.