Life As We Knew It...

As I sit here staring at my fingers, resting on the keyboard, I can't really think of anything to joke about. To ramble on about the mundane things in life that bug me would seem so totally wrong in view of what's going on in Louisiana, Mississippi, and Alabama. It's hard to even begin to understand just what those folks are enduring.
I went a day without taking a shower recently, and I was absolutely miserable. I complain if I'm out in public and can't find a restroom that's clean enough to "suit my standards." I get upset if the bottle of water in the refrigerator is not cold enough. I wonder how I would stand up to the ordeals those folks down there are facing.
One thing for certain, the people who have gone through what these people have gone through in the past few days will never be the same. They can't be. Their whole world has been turned upside down. I panic when I can't reach my wife or daughter on the telephone. There are people along the Gulf Coast who don't know if their loved ones are dead or alive, and, for the present, have no way of finding out. There are others who know their loved ones didn't survive, some even watching persons they care for being swept off of roofs or out of windows, our right out of their arms, to their death.
The survivors don't even have time to mourn, at least not in the way most of us are accustomed to mourning. They're too busy striving to remain survivors. It does say something about the human will to go on, even in the face of horrible circumstances. And, somehow, I guess, most of these folks will survive. They will go on. They'll rebuild their lives, either there or somewhere else. But, there's no way they will ever be the same.
It's been stated over and over during the past few days, how such tragedies bring out the worst in some, and the best in some. Those for whom Katrina has brought out the worst aren't even worth me taking the time to write about. But I will say this, while I totally detest those who are looting for TVs, jewelry, and other luxuries, I have to wonder how many of those who are condemning the looters, have been guilty of greedily engaging in dishonest business practices in the corporate world. I'm not saying that to downplay, or justify, or minimize the horror caused by those greedy individuals in New Orleans who are terrorizing their neighbors, and making rescue even more difficult. But greed is greed. And, while I believe there are countless numbers who simply want a handout, I also think that corporate and poliltical greed has, at least to some extent, played a role in keeping the downtrodden down. I can only hope that if I were among the many in New Orleans who were too poor to leave town, I wouldn't be among those looters.
One thing that's clear, given the right (or the wrong) circumstances, "normal" everyday citizens, can quickly become vicious, violent criminals. And those who are already vicious, violent criminals will take advantage of those circumstances to do whatever they want, to whomever they want...all the while justifying their actions because of the inability of others to meet their demands. It's pretty scary.
It's like watching one of those horrible futuristic movies about the deterioration of human society. Only we can't get up and go get popcorn and remind ourselves it's just a movie. This is real life. And, from what I can see from a distance, I think it's worse than any movie I've ever seen.
And, while the movie trailer proclaims, "Coming soon to a theater near you," the reality of the past few days screams, "This could be you." Would our neighbors, our public officials, we, ourselves, act any differently than those whom we are watching on television, if this were happening in our hometown?
In the past, including September 11, 2001, life, for the most part, and for the majority, returned to normal. Will that happen again? Or is this somehow so totally different, so much more horrible, that life for most of us will never be the same? I guess we'll just have to wait and see.