January 12, 2007
Friday, January 12, 2007
By Joshua HarbertOur 6:00 wake up time was well worth it. We departed at 6:30 for the 7:00 Mass at St. Georges Cathedral. While we waited for the service to start I looked through some of the prayers and Psalms in the prayer book. There was a lovely one which first praised God, thanked Him for the gifts of grace and hope through Jesus, and concluded with a request for that we may show our thanksgiving not only with words but with service as well. It was a fine preparation for the service. When Desmond Tutu entered the first thing I noticed was his smile. The joy of the Lord filled his face. After an opening prayer, introductions were made of all the visiting people (including our group). Birthdays were also celebrated. When one person said he was turning 21, Tutu joked, “When did that happen to me?” Tutu is an extremely gracious and humble man, and he made everyone feel welcome. Yet at the same time it was evident that he was a man of strong faith. The rest of the service was full of prayers and Scripture readings. There were prayers of confession, praise and encouragement including the Lords Prayer and the Prayer of St. Francis of Assisi. The presence of the King of Kings filled the room as we fellowshipped together. Toward the end, we partook in communion as Tutu led us. He gave the bread and two others gave the wine. It was again a great honor to partake communion with brothers and sisters in South Africa. It was a lovely service. After the service we took a group photo with Tutu. May God continue to bless the work he is doing.
From there we headed to the Koeberg Nuclear Power plant. They showed us a brief introduction video of the plant. Our guide, Carin, then gave a short talk about the plant and the power situation in South Africa. An interesting fact was that South Africa produces 60 percent of Africa’s power, but only 2% of power produced in South Africa is exported. Eskom is a state owned company that provides 95% of the nations power. Carin told us that they are the only nuclear power plant in Africa. She also told us of the effects of Apartheid and how fuel costs dropped 40% when South Africa opened for trade again in 1994.
After a brief tea we headed out to the actual plant. We were given a tour of the turbines (where the electricity is actually generated), the control room, pumping and filtering rooms, and the low-level radiation waste area. The shear size of the facility was outstanding. The walls shielding the reactor were one meter thick. The turbines, pipes and other equipment were all huge. Safety was heavily emphasized. The engineers working the control room had to be retested every 6 weeks. Security badges were required throughout the entire facility. It was fascinating to see what I’d learned in my classes at Calvin applied in a real situation. Once we were finished touring the plant, we returned for lunch at the visitors’ center. On the way out information about the plant and about Pebble Bed Nuclear Reactors, which Eskom was investigating, was given out. Unsurprisingly, it was mainly the engineers that took the packets. The visit was something that would never have been done in the US and was quite a privilege.
When we got back to the seminary, most people took a short nap. Afterwards, we cleaned the common room, kitchens and started the bathrooms. We then had a short meeting and headed to the Waterfront. It was a beautiful evening and the Jazz Festival provided wonderful music. We had dinner there (some of us had brought sandwiches with us), walked around a bit, and enjoyed the music and each other’s company. It was a fine conclusion to a very good day.
P.S. Grandma Heun says “hi” to everyone back home. She wants to make sure that all her friends back home don’t start to get worried because they haven’t heard from her for a while.
