Just filling in the blanks for our chefs... The city is full of music, and jazz which makes for great dancing. All the victims that we have talked to speak of how blessed they are to be back, and see the rebirth of their city. Despite the blocks of empty neighborhoods, loss of loved ones, and lack of housing. People are still living in the moldy houses that are bare to the studs. They have oil lamps for lighting, and are lucky if they have a mattress to sleep on. The referb of the 70's was only a patch job. Now the people here are happy to know that the rebuilding is providing them with housing that is better than they have seen in generations.
The stories here are profound... A family had climbed 30 feet up a tree to escape the flood waters. The entire family clung to the branches during the hurricane with wind speed, rain, and rushing water. The sound of the storm was so loud they could not hear their own screams. They had decided each individually that if one member let go that they would all let go. Luckily they survived to tell the tale.
The damaged church that we had looked at in the Lower 9th Ward was the point at which the direty of a situation hit home for me. 22 people had died in that church looking for salvation of some kind. May they rest in peace... Life is still there though. Evidence of child play is scattered across the soft squishy floor. Sidewalk chalk, and markers strewn, a preschool chair by a broken window, and newly pinned school cut outs of colors and animals on the walls. They are only happy to be home even though their home is destroyed.
