THANK you for your good coverage of the late Pope John Paul II.
I lived in Kenya, East Africa when Pope John Paul visited Kenya from May 6-8, 1980.
We lived up country, near Lake Victoria, and I was privileged to have an invitation to be at the Holy Family Cathedral grounds to meet His Holiness following his arrival at Nairobi Airport from Zaire.
It was more than a three-hour journey. I had an African driver and took the African catechist from our missions church.
As one can imagine, the streets around the cathedral were crowded, but having a special pass we were able to drive to the main gate, but the driver had to drive around to find a parking spot.
The three of us then got a wonderful spot inside the main gates and stood right on the rope barrier very close to the entrance.
A dear elderly Goanese lady squeezed in and asked if she could stand next to me.
So there we were — the three different colours (black, brown, white). A real multiculture.
As His Holiness walked through the gates, we could have stretched out and touched him! He turned to us and smiled and gave us a blessing. What a day that was!
The welcoming hymn that was sung in Swahili was ‘All you people clap your hands’ (‘Enyi watu wote pigeni makofi’).
C.M. WILSON
Taringa, Qld
