11 months later

Last weekend I went to New Orleans with my parents who were visiting. Today I traveled to the Mississippi Gulf Coast with two women from the church.

I am overwhelmed.

Cement slabs mark where homes used to sit.
Mattresses and sheets are still littered in some of the trees.
Entire apartment complexes and shopping centers are gutted and abandoned.
Some areas look like a ghost town.
Debris still litters the beaches and waters.
Rebuilding will be a long process.

Adults mark time as pre- and post-Katrina.
Contractors continue to work on storm damaged homes.
Children look to the skies scared of dark clouds and any sign of rain.
People share stories of going in to sort through what was left.
A man tells me about how he headed in to help and found bodies floating in the waters.
Remembering is still a daily occurrence.

Yet, remembering and rebuilding have led to regrowth.
Some areas are cleaned up.
Some people have moved back.
Groups continue to travel and lend a helping hand.
Slowly life is put back together.