slow burn
when katrina hit the gulf coast and then made its way up the eastern shore, i was annoyed because of the rain. as the week progressed, i became more annoyed because every network channel, radio station, and news website in america was constantly reporting on the effects of katrina; it seemed as if that was the only thing they talked about for days on end. but as the one week turned into the next, i began to see the situation for what it truly is: a horrible, devastating event that has turned nightmare into reality. since this slow realization, i've begun a slow burn, from deep sadness, to frustration, to anger. sadness for the people who died and were injured, and the thousdands of displaced citizens of louisiana and mississippi. frustration from the knowledge that there's only so much i can do, and no matter what i do, it won't be enough. anger in regards to the bureaucracy, red tape, and other such political nonsense that is delaying the delivery of much-needed goods to the evacuees. so what can i do? well, there's nothing i can really do to combat the sadness except to feel it. my mom and i were going to donate money to the red cross, but my dad informed me that one of his friends (mr. john, who also happens to work for nga) and one of his coworkers are renting a truck (as in something like a u-haul or other equipment moving vehicle), loading it up, and heading to the gulf coast next weekend to deliver goods to people who were overlooked or haven't yet received help. my mother and i are going to go out and buy stuff, like bottled water, baby wipes, diapers, etc., and send down there with mr. john. even though it's not enough, i feel good being able to do something.
and what of politics? i never had much use for it myself. it just seems to mess everything up, especially when you have a doody-head for a president. but this is no ordinary garden-variety idiot; i think God made him special. i'm sure everyone's aware (or maybe not) of the whole rich-white-man-vs-poor-black-man issue. the blacks (not just poor ones) are saying that bush doesn't care about black people. my mother and i had a long talk about this yesterday. she said it's not that he doesn't care, it's just that he's indifferent. president bush grew up privileged; he never had to worry about money, never knew what it was like to have to live paycheck to paycheck like a lot of the katrina victims had to do. (i say had because a lot of them are out of jobs right now and are therefore getting no paycheck.) there is a saying: "ignorance isn't bliss; it's a deadly sin that rips the fabric of life." (who said it? if you guess correctly, you get a cookie!) kanye west made a comment earlier this week denouncing bush (saying that he didn't care...) and whatever segment that statement was part of was supposed to be aired tonight (or was it last night?) however, since it was on tape, they (the media) decided to edit it out. censorship! why? because he expressed an opinion contrary popular opinion? (although, truth be told, president bush's popularity is steadily waning.) it's not right. aren't "we" fighting for the same freedoms for the iraqi people? yet here we are, in a country that has celerated freedom for over 200 years, and someone can't express an opinion because someone else might not like it? mm-hmm. yet barbara bush can say that the hurricane victims are better off now than they were before because they were underprivileged. hmm... (yeah, i was really upset when i heard that on the radio this morning.) and then there's the whole thing about the director of fema. this is what it boils down to: he had information before the hurricane hit, he could have had people in place before that time, he didn't, and after the devastation of the gulf coast, there were further delays before people started receiving aid. my dad told me he'd put money on the man getting fired. i said, yeah right! president bush said he'd fire whoever exposed that cia agent, and did he fire rove? heck no! is he going to fire mr. director? highly unlikely, although daddy informed me today that he's been taken off the katrina project and sent back to washington.
something else that has been weighing on me lately. i feel this pressing need to spread The Word to people, beginning with those closest to me. that would mean my family first. i've been reading the book of ezekial in the Bible, and what's fascinating about this particular prophet is that God told him that he was going to destroy judah because of its wickedness and unrepentence. the fascinating part is that God told ezekial to do very specific things to demonstrate to the people of judah what was going to happen to them. for instance, God told ezekial to lie on one side of his body in the street for exactly "x" number of days and then to switch sides, lying on the other for the same amount of days. he was to have only one meal a day, approximately 8 ounces, and it was to consist of meat and something else. (details are fuzzy, for it's a rather long book.) and he did it! i thought it was remarkable, the amount of obedience he demonstrated! if God asked me to do that, would i? i was also reading a bit in ephesians last night in my study Bible, about light and darkness (chapter five) and how darkness doesn't understand darkness and light puts out darkness and how we as christians must bring things done in the dark to light, exposing them for what they really are, because if we don't, it's as if we approve of these things. that really struck me because i know about some things going on, things i've known about for a few years at least, but have probably been going on longer. things that i have kept quiet about up until now. i can't anymore. and i am scared to death, but i know something has to be said before anymore damage is done. God has put this on my heart and i've been praying for clarity just to be sure that this is truly from God and not from the evil one. (oh! the devil is a liar!) but i've been trying really hard to stick to my daily reading/meditation and i feel confident about what i have to do next.
with that said, it's time for my Bible study. good night!
and what of politics? i never had much use for it myself. it just seems to mess everything up, especially when you have a doody-head for a president. but this is no ordinary garden-variety idiot; i think God made him special. i'm sure everyone's aware (or maybe not) of the whole rich-white-man-vs-poor-black-man issue. the blacks (not just poor ones) are saying that bush doesn't care about black people. my mother and i had a long talk about this yesterday. she said it's not that he doesn't care, it's just that he's indifferent. president bush grew up privileged; he never had to worry about money, never knew what it was like to have to live paycheck to paycheck like a lot of the katrina victims had to do. (i say had because a lot of them are out of jobs right now and are therefore getting no paycheck.) there is a saying: "ignorance isn't bliss; it's a deadly sin that rips the fabric of life." (who said it? if you guess correctly, you get a cookie!) kanye west made a comment earlier this week denouncing bush (saying that he didn't care...) and whatever segment that statement was part of was supposed to be aired tonight (or was it last night?) however, since it was on tape, they (the media) decided to edit it out. censorship! why? because he expressed an opinion contrary popular opinion? (although, truth be told, president bush's popularity is steadily waning.) it's not right. aren't "we" fighting for the same freedoms for the iraqi people? yet here we are, in a country that has celerated freedom for over 200 years, and someone can't express an opinion because someone else might not like it? mm-hmm. yet barbara bush can say that the hurricane victims are better off now than they were before because they were underprivileged. hmm... (yeah, i was really upset when i heard that on the radio this morning.) and then there's the whole thing about the director of fema. this is what it boils down to: he had information before the hurricane hit, he could have had people in place before that time, he didn't, and after the devastation of the gulf coast, there were further delays before people started receiving aid. my dad told me he'd put money on the man getting fired. i said, yeah right! president bush said he'd fire whoever exposed that cia agent, and did he fire rove? heck no! is he going to fire mr. director? highly unlikely, although daddy informed me today that he's been taken off the katrina project and sent back to washington.
something else that has been weighing on me lately. i feel this pressing need to spread The Word to people, beginning with those closest to me. that would mean my family first. i've been reading the book of ezekial in the Bible, and what's fascinating about this particular prophet is that God told him that he was going to destroy judah because of its wickedness and unrepentence. the fascinating part is that God told ezekial to do very specific things to demonstrate to the people of judah what was going to happen to them. for instance, God told ezekial to lie on one side of his body in the street for exactly "x" number of days and then to switch sides, lying on the other for the same amount of days. he was to have only one meal a day, approximately 8 ounces, and it was to consist of meat and something else. (details are fuzzy, for it's a rather long book.) and he did it! i thought it was remarkable, the amount of obedience he demonstrated! if God asked me to do that, would i? i was also reading a bit in ephesians last night in my study Bible, about light and darkness (chapter five) and how darkness doesn't understand darkness and light puts out darkness and how we as christians must bring things done in the dark to light, exposing them for what they really are, because if we don't, it's as if we approve of these things. that really struck me because i know about some things going on, things i've known about for a few years at least, but have probably been going on longer. things that i have kept quiet about up until now. i can't anymore. and i am scared to death, but i know something has to be said before anymore damage is done. God has put this on my heart and i've been praying for clarity just to be sure that this is truly from God and not from the evil one. (oh! the devil is a liar!) but i've been trying really hard to stick to my daily reading/meditation and i feel confident about what i have to do next.
with that said, it's time for my Bible study. good night!