| In the
Wake of Katrina, it's Bitter or Better All Over Again
It
was 50 years ago that polio knocked out my legs. In August 2005,
Hurricane Katrina knocked out my city. Therefore today, I do not
have a leg to stand on or a house to sit in - and I still consider
myself lucky, even blessed.
I am Lucky like the three legged dog, blind
in one eye, with half an ear - whose name is Lucky. The dog still
has a tail however, and she is wagging it to beat the blues. Looking
for the "better" in there somewhere. I have a tale, too.
A tale of two legs undervalued and a city under water.
I feel as though I have lost part of my identity
- although labels have always eluded me. I used to be called crippled,
then disabled, then differently abled. Pretty soon, I will be cured!
Now I am called homeless, storm victim, refugee, evacuee but I think
I will stick with "lucky."
So why am I blessed? Because I am better
than the circumstances that surround me, however dire they may seem.
Katrina is just another barrier in the disability course of life.
When life gives you lemons - make lemonade, lemon pie, or as we
do in Minnesota - lemon bars!
It is truly a bitter time and a better time.
A few days ago, Hurricane Katrina was a lot of hot air and now it
represents destruction of multitudinous proportions, losses of all
kinds and looting. It also stands for the hope of restoration, a
glowing reminder of all the blessings that we still have and the
joy of our fellow comrades along the path of life who are there
to help in this time of need.
When my legs gave out like the outmatched New Orleans levee, I felt
despair and wanted to give up. I was bitter and there seemed to
be no better in sight. But over time I have learned how to take
my misfortune and turn it in to an opportunity. An opportunity for
growth. My legs, like my city will never be the same, but I have
learned the value of becoming better for it.
A Yogi Berra says, this is "deja vu, all over again."
When I contracted polio, which crippled both of my legs, those were
very bitter times, and I never even dreamed that there was a possibility
of better. After years of prayers, support, therapy and resources
of all kinds, I learned the truth. The truth that I can change my
mind about my seemingly bitter experiences as a result. I became
a professional social worker, an Inspirational Humorist and most
recently a "Sit Up Comedian. What I now "sit for"
is professing to make life better, even when it may be easier to
be better.
Our saga began two days before the storm struck New Orleans. Together,
my husband, our son,.our two un loving Love Birds, my hyperactive
yellow lab and I headed for safe ground - Birmingham, Alabama, where
my husband's family resides. They have welcomed us many times before
for our great escapes during the many storm scares of hurricane
season (June 1 - Nov. 1) They thought we were going to stay for
a couple of days, just as before. It is just occuring to each of
us simultaneously, that we have "moved in" for a while!
For so long, I have been saying that if I had the time, I would...pray
and meditate more, I would remodel my thoughts and aspirations,
I would exercise more. In other words, I would perform a mental,
emotional, physical and spiritual makeover. That time has come.
To misquote Job, that which I have procrastinated about, hath come
upon me. If not now , why not. I have nothing to lose except some
bad habits and fearful thoughts.
Once again, I get to practice what I preach and even find some things
funny in this adversity - a daunting task right now. Now I have
the inner resources to think differently, and still have the determination
to see and experience the better in this situation, and I will succeed.
Katina's seige of water has flooded my neighborhood,
but not dampened my spirit. It has been an August not to remember,
but never to forget.
Bitter or better, its up to you, it's up to me all over again.
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