Unbelievable.
The vastness of the devestation of New Orleans is just beginning to resonate in me. One minute I think, "It can't be as bad as the news makes it out to be. Those photos can't be real. It must be a hoax. Everything is fine." And then I think, "Where are my friends?" I don't want to even write the line of thought that follows. It's too terrifying. It's too horrible to comprehend. Try as I may, I can't make it real. I keep waiting to see a post on Jack's website. Or I call incessantly to hear incessant, deadened beeping of disconnected lines.
I wonder.
Every day I wonder about someone different. I wonder about my friends. I wonder about my ex-husband. I wonder about my former boss, my former office mate, my former customers. I wonder about people whose names I never knew. I wonder about the nice, young girls who worked at the credit union. I wonder about the hispanic lady who owned the coffee booth at the mall. I wonder about the old preacher on Canal Street and about the groundskeeper of the statue garden in City Park. I wonder about the statues and about the beads in the trees. I wonder about the bronze pigeons on the fountain in the French Quarter and about the giant face on Basin Street.
I just don't know what to believe or what to think. My head feels swollen with unnamed fears and a dreadful sort of anticipation. I wish I could know something.
I wonder.
Every day I wonder about someone different. I wonder about my friends. I wonder about my ex-husband. I wonder about my former boss, my former office mate, my former customers. I wonder about people whose names I never knew. I wonder about the nice, young girls who worked at the credit union. I wonder about the hispanic lady who owned the coffee booth at the mall. I wonder about the old preacher on Canal Street and about the groundskeeper of the statue garden in City Park. I wonder about the statues and about the beads in the trees. I wonder about the bronze pigeons on the fountain in the French Quarter and about the giant face on Basin Street.
I just don't know what to believe or what to think. My head feels swollen with unnamed fears and a dreadful sort of anticipation. I wish I could know something.
posted by Autumn at 8:30 PM
3 Comments:
Autumn,
I just heard on the radio today that a few companies in New Orleans got a radio broadcast up and running out of the city. You can listen to streaming audio at wwl.com. Don't know if you have a different source for info, or if you knew about this or not, but when I heard about it I thought of you and your friends and family there and wanted to let you know. Hope your loved ones are safe.
Thanks, Scott. I just spoke with my best friend last night, and I feel reassured that most of my friends are safe and sound. And all of my family live in North Carolina. I feel so fortunate that I moved when I did now, despite the sadness I felt when I left what had become my home over the years. It was difficult to start over here, but I think now of all of the people who have no choice about starting over and who have no alternative or resources. At least I had a home to return to and a family to help me. I can't even begin to imagine what the natives of New Orleans, the ones who have been there for generations, must be feeling as they're air-lifted out of the vicinity and look back on the remains of everything they've ever known.
I'm glad to know that your friends are okay. And I feel the same way. The thought of my entire life being wahsed away is one I can't even begin to fathom.
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