Have You Been Moved?

Over the past 72 hours we've all likely seen a lot of footage and heard lots of information about the tragedy associated with Hurricane Katrina. It's hard to believe that so much pain and suffering could exist so close to home (New Orleans used to be a 5 hour drive from the Houston area).

I saw on CNN an interview with a man who recounted how he lost his wife in rising waters. From what I could understand, the roof they were standing on to get out of the water suddenly split apart causing his wife to fall in. He reached for her and was trying to pull her out but could not. The house was literally coming apart around them. His wife told him to get their children and grandchildren out and save himself. He escaped with 3 children and the clothes on his back. The reporter seems to be in tears. You can see it along with other footage and stories here.

The issue of pain and suffering is not new to the human race. We each have faced some sort of pain and or suffering in the course of our lives. In times like these, questions like "where is God in this?" or "how could God allow this?" seem endless. I know I can't answer such questions. I'm barely able to grapple with them myself. My brother-in-law Aaron has a blog of his own and he's been knocking that subject around. He has some good things to say that might make some sense of what is going on in front of our eyes. Click here to read Aaron's blog.

My intent however isn't to discuss the matter of pain. There's a lot more writers out there who frame the argument quite nicely. I like to think I'm well acquainted with pain. I know I will most likely live with a limp, a bad shoulder and neck problems for the rest of my life. It's small potatoes to what some folks endure. Take the folks from New Orleans. How can anyone get past that?

Instead, I'm concerned about how we, who have watched this event unfold from a distance, have been impacted. Have we been moved by what we've seen? Is this human tragedy little more than reality TV that we watch along with our evening meal? Do we feel compassion in the face of such grief and loss? I've been asking myself as I've scoured the internet for the latest update on the aftermath of the storm. Covering this story has been a shot in the arm for cable and TV news stations. Is this just another story or TV show? Or does this hit us in the chest and cause a lump to form in our throats?

It should. It could have been us who suddenly lost everything and is now at the mercy of the elements. It could have been us, fighting to survive and being forced to steal. Please understand, I'm not advocating looting or those who have been participating in it. Stealing is wrong on several different moral levels. But, what would we do in the face of hunger, pestilence and despair? Notice that most of these folks weren't stealing "valuables." They were going after essentials: food, water, clothing. What else is left?

So I ask, in the face of the horror that is the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, have you been moved by what you've seen? Does it grip your heart when you see a child crying because his grandmother was lost to "storm surge?" Do you offer a prayer for those who tell their harrowing stories of how they survived "the perfect storm" and don't know what they will do next? We haven't begun to know the extent of damage or how much has been lost. We're going to have to fight apathy and lethargy and be moved by this tragedy. Afterall, wouldn't we want someone else to do the same for us?