After Katrina hit in August 2005 I joined the Episcopal diocese of Louisiana’s staff as Director of Public Relations. It was great to roll up my sleeves and contribute in such an exciting way.
We have since moved to Pennsylvania, but the good people there continue the hard work of recovery. The latest reflection comes from a former colleague, Dennis McManis who was interviewed by the Disaster News Network, the link is here.
On a personal note, I am realizing the many things I left undone last year because we were so taken with the storm and recovery. Even though we weren’t directly affected (we didn’t lose our home or jobs) we were very involved. I realized the other day that I didn’t really read last year for pleasure, it was too hard to concentrate. I wrote a lot for the diocese but not creatively. I kept up my journaling, but the entries are much shorter and factual, not reflective. I realize that my process is a luxury compared to those who were directly affected, but it is interesting to note that everyone was affected to some degree by living through the experience.
