Desmond Tutu Service & Blessing

Though I had become accustomed to uncomfortably early wake up times over break in Botswana and Zimbabwe, the few days of sleep I had enjoyed this week made the 6:30 wake up today difficult. However, after pushing through the discomfort, I was happy I did. A group of us were heading to St. George's Cathedral in Cape Town, the Anglican Church, to witness Desmond Tutu, the former Archbishop of South Africa, Nobel Peace Prize Winner and internationally known activist who rose to international fame during apartheid.

Desmond, with the same smile he has today, accepting the Nobel Prize

The service was set to start at 7:15 and we were running a few minutes late. I was leading a pack of 6 girls to the service and we had never been to the cathedral before. We arrived at about 7:19 and I entered to find the main church was empty. This worried me. Was the service over, I wondered. I expected there to be crowds, pouring out into the street. But as we looked through the church, we saw a small side room, with no more than 30 people inside of it. Sure enough, in this small enclosure was Desmond behind the lectern. We srambled in as quietly as we could, in awe of how intimate the setting was. Desmond was oozing with charisma, the largest smile I'd ever witnessed. He laughed and joked in his sermons, uncommon among religious men, especially of his ilk. He was one of the most famous religious men in the world, meeting with world leaders on all continents, from US presidents, European Prime Ministers, the Pope, the Dali Lama, even Bono.

Tutu with Mandela at his Presidential Inauguration

He carried himself as if he were the least known, poorest man in the world, so modest and humble, yet he also carried himself like the happiest man in the world. Just being in his presence made you want to be a better person, to give more, take less. I've never been in the presence of anyone quiote like him. He wanted to get to know everyone that was in the room that day, so he came and shook each one of our hands when we offered each other a sign of peace. I said to him "peace be with you," and I don't know if it was because it was early in the morning and I hadn't cleared my throat or I was so nervous to be shaking his hand and speaking to him, but my voice came out very deep and muddled. Desmond instantly started cracking up and said to the whole room, "ahh this young man has a deep grumble of a voice" and then continued to imitate me. Everyone laughed and he went on greeting everyone.

After communion had been offered he asked that all visitors of the church stand up and introduce themselves, where they were from, why they were here, etc... He genuinely wanted to take the time to get to know each and every visitor that had found their way to St. George's Cathedral that day. He signed autographs for us, took pictures with us and laughed and joked with us until he left the church. Everyone was struck by the way he carried himself in the church that day. His charisma and charm was unparalleled.

Inside St. George's

I made a few donations to collect a few postcards to mail to my grandmother, and then went and lit 2 candles, one for my grandmother, Sally and one for her brother, George, who just passed away at the end of March. Though I never knew George, other than from Sally's stories, I knew he meant a great deal to Sally. He was her younger brother, and she mentioned to me, it is especially ahrd to lose a brother who is younger than you. I lit a candle for Sally and a candle for her brother George, may he rest in peace. After saying a few prayers for them, I left the church, overwhelmed by the experience I had this early Friday morning in St. George's Cathedral.