Gaudete! Gaudete! (Rejoice! Rejoice!) With this song, the youth choir opened the 73rd Youth Day at the German School in Pretoria.
Joyfully and with a lot of enthusiasm, the youth sang a variety of songs ranging from 3-choired pieces to 6-part canons, under the guidance of the youth conductor, Bernhard Böhmer. This year the service of the Youth Day took place in the Hall of the German School. With the good acoustics, instrumental accompaniment and the many youths, the singing sounded amazing and brought much joy to the listeners as well as the youths. Pastor Helmut Paul and Pastor Dr Karl Böhmer held the service.
A short break followed the service. Friends and family couldn’t wait to catch up over a cup of coffee and some delicious snacks. The children’s choir started off the second half of the programme, followed by the individual youth groups. With the first sounds of the instruments and the cheerful atmosphere in the hall, the singing of folk songs really took off – everything is Du-waka-du-waka-du! The youth ended off this part of the Youth Day with the German hit “Freunde hat man nie genug zum Feiern und im Leben!”
After a tasty lunch, young and old met on the sports field for the “Polonaise.” The brass band ensured that the youths marched to the beat of the music. Whether running the relay, playing volleyball and rugby or joining in the tug-of-war, there was something for everyone to participate in, even the little children were eager to participate! Very soon, the referees had to look for some rugby balls that had “disappeared.” Congratulations to all the winners!
Very soon, the sun started setting and it was time to go home. Pastor Michael Ahlers held a devotion in the hall to end off the day. Just as the hair on our body keeps re-growing, we are constantly re-infected with sin. We constantly need the forgiveness of sins to cleanse us.
In the evening, the youths met up again in the hall. The evening was filled with dancing, laughing and a merry get-together.
Thank you to everyone who helped with the planning and co-ordination of this wonderful day.
Liesel Paul, Pretoria
