(no subject)
New Orleans was amazing, as always.
It has been quite sometime since I last visited this amazing city. So it was very surreal to see New Orleans through older eyes. New Orleans will always hold a special place in my heart for many reasons. I have spent so many wonderful memories there and plan to spend much more. As a child there was always this positive energy that surround the Big Easy. From the smells of my Granny's southern home cooking to the hustle and bustle of Bourbon Street . Every time I step foot in that city it is like everything comes alive. The warmth of the muggy skies and the sincerity of them southern folk always brings a smile to my face. And the music... oh the music. As a child New Orleans was the one place I could go where all your cares just floated away. But this time it was different.
I have always pictured New Orleans to be this safe, cheerful, and exciting city. No matter what people said I just couldn't see any bad there because it was a place that made me so happy. I don't know if I have just matured in my thinking or reality has set in but New Orleans showed its true skin this weekend. I began to see everything for how it really is.
My family is so unbelievably wonderful and the times that my fathers side of the family meets up are amongst the best, but everyone this weekend brought out personality traits that I have never seen before. Some good, most bad. But the thing that disappointed me the most was to see was that besides my Granny, who is the most amazing women I know, they were all so unhappy and it has been that way all along. And to be honest, I don't think anyone will ever try to change things. If they didn't choose to wallow in their self pity, then they were completely oblivious. In order to make a positive change in your life you have to first acknowledge the problem and then actively work to change it. Why stay in a place that doesn't bring happiness to your life? I just don't understand it.
As we drove to my Granny's from the airport I began to realize the devastation. Businesses struggling to get by and homes abandoned. While there were no more FEMA trailers and homes began to feel like homes, the city looked beaten up. As the weekend went on I began to realize that even though Katrina did create damage, that the city was declining on its own. I asked as we were driving to downtown New Orleans Saturday afternoon, "Has the city always looked so run down or did Katrina play a main factor?" And it was then as my Uncle responded with, " Oh no New Orleans has always been this way, it has the highest crime rate in the nation," all the safety, cheerfulness, and excitement I held as a child went away. It is like looking a close friend.
However, even though I began to see New Orleans differently it was always hold a special place in my heart.
I hope that everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving break!
It has been quite sometime since I last visited this amazing city. So it was very surreal to see New Orleans through older eyes. New Orleans will always hold a special place in my heart for many reasons. I have spent so many wonderful memories there and plan to spend much more. As a child there was always this positive energy that surround the Big Easy. From the smells of my Granny's southern home cooking to the hustle and bustle of Bourbon Street . Every time I step foot in that city it is like everything comes alive. The warmth of the muggy skies and the sincerity of them southern folk always brings a smile to my face. And the music... oh the music. As a child New Orleans was the one place I could go where all your cares just floated away. But this time it was different.
I have always pictured New Orleans to be this safe, cheerful, and exciting city. No matter what people said I just couldn't see any bad there because it was a place that made me so happy. I don't know if I have just matured in my thinking or reality has set in but New Orleans showed its true skin this weekend. I began to see everything for how it really is.
My family is so unbelievably wonderful and the times that my fathers side of the family meets up are amongst the best, but everyone this weekend brought out personality traits that I have never seen before. Some good, most bad. But the thing that disappointed me the most was to see was that besides my Granny, who is the most amazing women I know, they were all so unhappy and it has been that way all along. And to be honest, I don't think anyone will ever try to change things. If they didn't choose to wallow in their self pity, then they were completely oblivious. In order to make a positive change in your life you have to first acknowledge the problem and then actively work to change it. Why stay in a place that doesn't bring happiness to your life? I just don't understand it.
As we drove to my Granny's from the airport I began to realize the devastation. Businesses struggling to get by and homes abandoned. While there were no more FEMA trailers and homes began to feel like homes, the city looked beaten up. As the weekend went on I began to realize that even though Katrina did create damage, that the city was declining on its own. I asked as we were driving to downtown New Orleans Saturday afternoon, "Has the city always looked so run down or did Katrina play a main factor?" And it was then as my Uncle responded with, " Oh no New Orleans has always been this way, it has the highest crime rate in the nation," all the safety, cheerfulness, and excitement I held as a child went away. It is like looking a close friend.
However, even though I began to see New Orleans differently it was always hold a special place in my heart.
I hope that everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving break!