Katrina thoughts

So yesterday was my last day at home on the gulf coast before returning to Colorado. One of the things I had wanted to do in the 2 weeks I was home was drive all the way from Pass Christian to Biloxi along the beach to really get a handle on what happened. The first night I got home I went to the beach and looked for awhile but wore out quick. It was a lot harder to confront all of that than I thought it would be. The whole time I was home people just wanted to talk about the storm. It kept coming up, no matter what we were discussing. It has effected many lives and will continue to do so, I think for many years. As I looked yesterday at a camp that was home to me for three summers on the western end of the gulf coast and saw the damage first hand, I was awestruck. All up the coast it was as if someone took and eraser and just erased everything along the water. It is really hard to articulate all that I felt in regards to the storm. I still get irritable when I hear people not from home talk about everything. I can't really explain why.

I did hear something cool while watching the Sugar Bowl. Former hated Florida GAtor and heisman trophy winner, danny wuerful was talking about a mission he worked with. He is a believer. Anyway he was talking abou tthe effect of the storm on poverty in New Orleans and said that the name Katrina meant cleansing. I thought that was beautiful. After thinking about that as I looked at the houseless foundations, I thought in some ways this was a beautiful thing. We are the ones that decided to take up those spots of earth with our castles. I'm not saying that I don't mourn with compassion, I do. At the same time though it is a great reminder the power of God to make all things new. We've built empires and God can reduce them to rubble in minutes. It is a humbling thought. There is a solemn beauty in that thought. I guess this is all I can communicate about all of this for right now. I am continuing to work through everything.