WHILE the world is still coming to terms with the events that led to the deaths of two hostages inside the Sydney Lindt Cafe, a Griffith family has joined thousands of mourners who showed their respect to the terror victims by laying flowers at Martin Place.
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Sandy Roberts, together with her two daughters, Amy, 12, and Lara, 8, stared at their TV "in shock and disbelief" when the siege unfolded last week.
"It was hard to explain to them (the children), what was going on. They kept asking 'Mum, what is he (the hostage taker) doing? Why is he there?'," Ms Roberts said.
"But what do you tell children?"
The mother-of-two said her two young daughters were "really shaken" when they heard that two hostages, Tori Johnson and Katrina Dawson, had tragically been killed.
"We go to the Lindt Cafe a lot, the girls love the place," Ms Roberts said.
"Obviously, it's hard to come to terms with what's happened, but when you're young it's even harder. They (Ms Robert's daughters) want their world to be beautiful and happy and I don't want them to lose faith and think the world is a bad place."
Ms Roberts said in a bid to give her family "hope and strength" she travelled to Sydney late last week to lay flowers at Martin Place.
"There were a lot of people there," Ms Roberts said.
"But for a busy Sydney afternoon it was quiet. People around us were crying. Strangers hugged one-another. A few people spoke a few quiet words."
The 42-year-old said the countless bunches of flowers were not only a sign of respect for the two hostages who lost their lives, but also a "powerful display of solidarity, mateship, faith and hope".
"The sea of flowers is a credit to us Australians. We stood up this week and united in love and strength," she said.
Ms Roberts said while terror came to our shores the day of the Sydney siege it was also a day that brought Australians from all walks of life closer together.
"It made us realise how precious life is, how much we should treasure every moment, and how lucky we are as a nation," she said.
"We will always have the ability to draw strength and hope from events that try to bring us down."
She said walking among the flowers laid in loving memory of the hostages who lost their lives gave her and her daughters a feeling of "belonging".
"The siege has united Australia. It was a day of fear and horror. But we're much stronger now.
"So many positives have come out of what has happened. What has happened is tragic and sad and it will never be forgotten. But I'm glad I took my girls there (to Martin Place). It has given us hope."
Ms Roberts said after all the floral tributes were a sign that the world was "still a place of love".
