FIve Year Anniversary of Katrina

It was five years ago today Katrina hit New Orleans and the Gulf Coast.  Much has come back, especially along the gulf coast, but sadly, New Orleans is still hurting.  I visited there not too long ago and was sad to see so little progress had been made.  On our 2007 Mission Trip we worked on two houses...gutting them to be readied for rebuilding.  One of the houses is now completely restored, the single mom now living there.  The other, the home of a large family, remains boarded up and in need of much more work.  Also, sadly to say, it remains the same today.  We are a great nation...but we are not always great at doing what is right and just.  Five years later, and a couple more disasters later, I wonder if we will ever learn.

Return to New Orleans

One of the missionairies, Kerry, who lives in New Orleans part of the year, recently had to return to attend to his partner who was suffering from a life-threatening illness. It became an ordeal when he discovered that the services one takes for granted in most places, were not readily available in the city. He ended up driving his partner to Hammond, 70 miles north west of the city for the treatment and care he needed.

This, my friends, is another reason we are planning to return to New Orleans. On October 27 we are planning another trip. At least one week, maybe two. Maybe doing the same, maybe something different. What will be interesting will be to see how much progress has been made since we were there in January.

The sad thing is, we do not expect much will have progressed--at least not enough.

Even Now

Sometimes, when I am alone in the quiet of the early morning, I can hear New Orleans calling to me. Her soft whisper and perfume come to me on a wayward breeze. She is still sad.. pining for her lost ones that lay forgotten in the rubble. Yes, she is sad but she is a powerful lady and her grief has made her stronger... stronger than hate, stronger than ignorance, stronger than beaurocracy. She promises me she will rise better and more beautiful. Here in the morning mists, I tell her she is already more beautiful with her scars and lines of worry. She is majestic and calm... waiting and listening to the sound of the night birds and the rushing waters of the Mississipppi. She also listens for your prayer... for your benediction and your hope. She listens for your arrival and longs for the touch of your heart and your hands. You are the answer to her prayers and to her hopes for her people. See her for yourself, let her in... give yourself to the journey... pray for her, hope for her, never forget... I can't... even now.

Reunion

Yesterday, most of us who were on the Mission Trip, were reunited to participate in an open forum on our experience in New Orleans. We viewed a Powerpoint presentation of the sights and sounds we experienced while there. We had a lunch together with the forty or so people who came to hear about the trip. And we conducted a panel Q&A.

It was, I believe for all of us, like we had just left Feliciana Avenue, just closed up the house on Galaxy Way, just toured the devastation of the 7th ward or St. Bernard's Parish. We all know for sure we will never be the same people we were before we went.

The group of people who were in N.O. the week before us from the Redlands UCC came to hear us. It was validation of our feelings, our reactions, our sense of what went on because they said, yes, that is just what they experienced.

It was a very satisfying, yet disturbing session. The tears are still just below the service. We have all gone back to our day to day lives, but things have changed. Priorities, paradigms and dreams have shifted.

And we all agree, we need to go back.

Rob

Press Enterprise Covers the Mission in N.O.

Hit this linke for local coverage of our mission.
http://www.pe.com/localnews/inland/stories/PE_News_Local_D_katrina23.1c61e4e.html

We Speak Out

On Sunday, February 24 at our church home we will tell our stories of our mission trip to New Orleans. I think we all ready to talk yet we are all wondering what it will be like. How will we be able to communitcate the sights, the sounds, the smells? Can anyone truly understand who has not been there? Will we ourselves ever truly understand all we saw and experienced?
We will know, Sunday at noon. We have invited the folks from our sister church in Redlands who went on a similar mission trip just a week before us. We are comrades in arms. We share a similar experience. And we all feel this need to share it because we cannot just forget and move on. Our neighbors are in need. And someday, we may be in need ourselves.
Rob
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Silence Broken...a Bit on NBC

Tonight on NBC Nightly News, Brian Williams and the crew did an update on what the status of New Orleans is at this point. Click here and check out the stories. Interestting how accurate our impressions were. http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/3032619/