K-Day

So it's the 2 year anniversary of Katrina. It seems like most people are trying to go on about their day today as if nothing had ever happened. But lurking beneath the subconscious of southeastern Louisiana and southern Mississippi are scars and psychological trauma that will last far beyond the FEMA trailers, debris and unclaimed bodies.

Example?

http://www.cnn.com/2007/US/08/28/murder.board.nola/index.html

D. and I live on the edge of Central City - mere blocks away, actually. We've seen things happen in our neighborhood that we're not quite accustomed to. (Like the bloody shovel lady incident from early June...?)

But on the flipside, our neighbors are mostly sweet retired couples who have lived in their houses for more than 40 years. And for every young teenager killing another over drugs, there is someone else moving here to help:

http://www.cnn.com/2007/US/08/28/katrina.braingain/index.html?iref=mpstoryview

And most of New Orleans notices those who have helped tirelessly to give the city some sense of normalcy and hope:

http://blog.nola.com/touchedbyanangel/

Progress is slow, absolutely. But for those who wonder why the gulf coast still looks like this two years, later, I remind you that south Florida took nearly ten years to recover from Andrew. Pensacola is still a mess three years after Ivan. It's the way of things. A hurricane indiscriminately destroys lives and places - and it takes time to heal both.