I was only in New Orleans once. My Dad & I took the train there from DC. I was 13, it was 1985. August. Extremely hot & muggy, and being from DC that's saying something.
We walked all around. French Quarter. Riverfront. Took the street car out to the garden district.
Is it all gone? The stories on NPR are so devastating. Evacuating that entire City!
And all the other stories. Of people coming home to find their front steps, nothing more. Livelihoods, homes, churches, schools, gone in the blink of the eye.
The loss of life, while sure to be big, was at least lessened by our warning systems and the evacuations.
But still. Such tragedy. It's slowly sinking in. I think it was when I heard they were moving the 25,000 in the Superdome to the Houston Astrodome, and clearing the schedule THROUGH DECEMBER that it hit me. New Orleans, as I visited it 20 years ago, is no more.
Prayers, thoughts, and more prayers for the hurricane survivors in all the Gulf States. My pastor told me we're having a collection at masses this weekend. May our hearts be generous to our brothers and sisters in need.
1 comment:
It's not all gone. From the reports I've been getting, there are several parts of the city (the area around Loyola University is one of them) that are in reasonably good shape at this time. But, yes, a lot is gone.
Mark
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