Hurricane Katrina

Most of us in the U.S. have probably heard about hurricane Katrina. Last year we watched in horror as it ripped apart three states, destroying people’s lives and homes as it went. We then watched as New Orleans, one of our most well-known cities, struggled to recover, and listened to countless reports of survivors trying to salvage the shreds of what they had.

But is it really over? Could such destruction really be fixed in a year?

My family and I traveled down through Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, and the panhandle of Florida. We were going to see a friend of mine in Alabama. On our way, we saw roofs ripped off of houses, abandoned buildings, and destroyed trees. We had to search for an hour to find a place to eat one night, because there were not enough people to keep the businesses open late at night. Housing prices and rents are through the roof, and those who could once afford a four bedroom house are now stuck in two-bedroom apartments. Some insurance companies won’t help, and the money the government gives to people to help them rebuild their lives isn’t enough.

You might be asking why they don’t leave. Would you leave your home, if it was all you had left? Would you have the strength to start anew after such a disaster, or would you want to cling to what you knew?

We may think it’s over, and that everything is fixed. It’s not, and it will take a lot longer if no one knows about it. On the way out of a restaurant, our waitress –my informant –told us to tell everyone we knew that they are not okay. And, slowly, we are. But now I make the same request of you. Send it on, or tell people what I just told you. If you do, perhaps we have a chance to fix things.

You’d be surprised at what people can do.