Day 5

Click this link to see a little more information on Chalmette, Louisiana (where we're staying).

------

(The following is a copy of an email sent by Georgia)

Greetings all,

Please forgive the mass e-mail, I was afraid I wouldn't have the energy for more than one. As many of you know, Domenick, Noah and I are in New Orleans helping to clean out houses which are still devastated from Katrina. This is easily one of the most meaningful experiences of my life. Today is Sunday and we are taking a day of rest. I'm beyond relieved for the break. While this is very rewarding work, it is also back-breaking and emotional. We worked a half day on Wednesday and three full days Thursday, Friday and Saturday. A full day being up at 6:30 and on the job site by 8:00am, work until lunch and then back at it again until about 4:30 or 5:00. We work until there just isn't enough light to see anymore. All utilities are turned off. So far our team of 10 to 12 has helped to finish two houses and completed two others ourselves.

We are working in St Bernard Parrish. The devastation is unreal here, on every street we've worked there has been at least one house (usually more) that just floated away. Every house we've worked on (mucked out) had water up to or above its roof line. There just aren't the words to describe the feelings that come from finding pieces of someone’s life in the rafters. We are doing a job that while daunting for us is too overwhelming for the homeowners. We are seeing shattered lives. They are living shattered lives. I see pictures of someone else’s life, they see their lives as they will never be again.

The boys are amazing as are Sarah and Jacob (Barbie and Loring's children). They work as hard if not harder than the adults, even Noah. They rarely take breaks and only complain when we all do about the smell or how truly gross this task is.

As for me I find myself in a constant state of gratitude. As Rick wrote in our Christmas letter "I have everything." I can't find a single thing in my life to complain about, "I have everything." I have a mantra to get me through it all. Thank you, thank you, thank you for... There is so much to fill in the blank with. As I write this I am struck by the realization that we don't hear the locals complain. They are grateful but they do not bemoan their situation, they just keep digging until they find the new life.

Well time to go! Happy New Year. Domenick, Noah and I return to Redlands on the 3rd.
Blessings (and there are so very many!!!!),
Georgia

=======

Sunday Night: Today has been a refreshing break from the work as we have strolled through the French Quarter, enjoyed authentic NOLA (New Orleans Louisiana) food, and enjoyed the color and vibrancy of old New Orleans. Now we are happily ensconced in a lovely hotel near the French Quarter where hot baths and real beds await all of us tonight. Barbie just noted that when we are at home, the “good things” are good, but here, the “good things” (like mattresses, electricity, curling irons, a healthy meal, etc.) are enjoyed at such a much deeper level. Our perspectives, as others on this blog have noted, are indeed being transformed by all that we are seeing and experiencing. I read in a local paper that all of the houses, except 5, in the entire St. Bernard Parish were flooded by the storm. Take a moment to imagine the magnitude of that reality. In every block of every neighborhood in the community of Chalmette, each and every home has obvious flood damage. Roofs are swaying, windows broken out, doors hanging on their hinges. Mud and sludge are everywhere—in carports, front yards, planter boxes. Some homes sport “For Sale” signs, and one has to wonder just what kind of price a person could expect to get for an “unmucked” house. Locals tell us that such a house is going for about $12-15,000, with an additional cost of about $35,000 to refurbish the house. Neighborhoods seem forever changed, unique customs that have emerged from generations of practice have vanished, and most homes we’ve seen have been abandoned by their occupants. Yesterday, after I took Lu and Deb to the airport, I traveled back to the shelter via the downtown area of Chalmette. On both sides of the main street, stores are still boarded up, and the two plazas (mini-malls) in town are both standing vacant. I am astonished (and angry) that after nearly a year and half, a community in the greatest country in the world is still in such disrepair. We cannot forget these people or their need. More than even after my trip to DC last year, I am convinced that we must do whatever we can to change the priorities of our good country from greed to care, and from war to peace. Imagine what our deployed troops could do with a few thousand crowbars and several truckloads of drywall to bring hope to these good people. Meantime, the people we’ve met seem to be finding hope wherever they are able. Perhaps our brief sojourn here will leave its own imprint of hope. Thanks again to each of you who are keeping this crew in your prayers. Blessings! Sharon