Not the Same

Since Katrina blew through southeast Louisiana, people have been asking me how things are doing. Most of them are kind and sincere in their question, with only a few casting doubts. I appreciate the concern.

When responding, I work to sound upbeat and point out some of the positives, while acknowledging that there remain problems. At the same time, I often find myself saying, “It’s just not the same.”

This weekend it occurred to me that it sounds contradictory to my normal stance that things evolve. They change. If we’re not growing and improving, we are falling behind. We are made that way. It’s why we become older and wiser.

And of course things in New Orleans aren’t the same. It was devastated by a major meteorological event. It has to change. We (meaning all of us) lost a lot when the levees broke.

The aftermath provided people an opportunity to use the problem to their advantage. Our house did not suffer the scale of damage that many others faced, but we did have enough to require some major work. It allowed us to completely remodel our first floor, making it better than it ever was before. In the end, it wasn’t the same. At that was a good thing.

But that’s not what I mean. I’m talking more about the spirit. Too much of the city longs for the way it used to be, wanting everything to go back to the way it was August 28, 2005. Because that cannot happen, people must deal with a mixture of emotions including anger, depression and defeat. Cynicism is the norm.

Some of that remains from before the storm. The Saints disappointed us far too many times. But that playful spirit that made New Orleans unique is gone, replaced with a sense of desperation and forboding.

The city will always be home, and I will cherish the memories I made there—the good and not so good. I made my best friends there. My roots are there. I became who I am because of the many years I lived there.

There are several things I miss about the city and many others I am glad to leave behind. I will be back to visit. That much I know.

What I want for New Orleans, though, is for it to regain that charm and spirit that separated it from every other city in the world. To use this time as an opportunity to make right all the wrongs that plagued the area for so many years. To vault itself back on top as one of the greatest cities in the world.

It won’t be easy by any stretch. And it will mean that several people will have to make incredibly difficult choices. I wish them the best. They are still facing a long road ahead.

:: :: ::