After we've written a check or helped in some other fashion, we all need to find a way to cope with disasters such as Hurricane Katrina. We find solace in work, in novels, in sports, or anything else that seems to bring a sense of normality—if even for just a few hours.
This morning, everything is relatively normal in the city in which I live. At least until I took my car in for an oil change and noted that gas is now a dollar higher than it was just a couple of days ago. But all over the city, people are working, getting their cars maintained, and doing the things that we do on any other normal day.
Of course, it's anything but normal. American citizens are living on bridges in New Orleans. Many family members cannot find relatives. Food is scarce in the Superdome, which doesn't seem all that aptly named right now. And the President is on his way this morning to see what he can do.
It's ironic though. Most days we long for anything but normality. Today we long for it in the biggest way, but it seems so elusive, doesn't it?
