A word of caution as we start to take stock of the damage in Katrina's wake. We must be very, very careful not to dehumanize those caught in the bull's eye of this disaster by switching words like "citizen" and "Americans" for labels such as "refugees" and "looters". Should we fail to keep in perspective who and what we will fail to sustain our own individual worth. There are absolutely no two ways about it.
Mind, take time. We are they and they are we.
3 comments:
Peggy,
It could have well been any one of us. People have forgotten about the Flood of 1993 that flooded areas on the banks of the Mississippi. I was living in Missouri during that time, but I was on high ground...and even now. I'm living in Louisiana, but I'm on high ground. Please continue to pray for our people down there and when they get out. It's going to be a long road to recovery.
It just so happened my husband and I took a train trip to Chicago just as the water started to rise in 1993. We too live in Missouri. A few days later when we were returning the whole midwest was flooded and ours was the last train allowed across the Mississippi River. As I looked out the train window the waters of the Mississippi were actually lapping over the sides of the tracks. It was utterly terrifying!!!
For the next several weeks we worked with FEMA in our town as their office suppliers and I came to know much about what it takes in a crisis. The response then was immediate. I pray that the people of the south will fare as well as those of us in the midwest did.
Amen! I tried not to immerse myself in it but how could I not. You're right too, refugees? What are they thinking?
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