In December 1998, Dan and I attended some of the World Council of Churches assembly in Harare. Nelson Mandela came to speak at the opening ceremony, and so we were lucky enough to be in the crowd welcoming him in, and then to sit and listen to his address. This is the only photo we got which he actually can be seen in - there were so many people, so much excitement, so much pushing and jostling, shouting and waving.
The height of feeling of the crowd was infectious - they were greeting him as a hero, and like a long-lost family member coming home. A Zimbabwean lady beside us was screeching his name, Madiba Madiba! and waving her programme violently over her head, completely beside herself. In very noticeable contrast to the ecstasy of the crowds, Robert Mugabe walked along beside him solid and stony-faced. This was the year he was beginning to pay his "war veterans" their "pensions," the year when inflation first took off, bread riots began and the first food shortages began to occur.
In his speech Mandela talked about his years in captivity, and about the role of Christians in Africa (very graciously). He also talked about leadership. He looked straight at Mugabe sitting front and centre, when he said, "When I step down from the presidency, I shall ask myself, "Have I served my people?""
Although we only saw him fleetingly, the adjectives that are being used everywhere about him seemed apparent then: gracious, true, uncompromising, humble, joyful. It was the joy he brought to the people that I remember the most.
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