HAVE YOU HUGGED A KATRINA VICTIM...ER...SURVIVOR LATELY?

I am a native Crescent City queen...a die hard Saints fan...with zero knowledge of the game..."Who dat talkin' 'bout beatin' those Saints? Who dat? Who dat?" -- Win, lose, draw...I'm rooting for the Saints...and I'm accustomed to the "L" word when it comes to the Saints...so don't expect me to cringe when they lose...just another excuse for a party...I hail from uptown...near Claiborne and Leonidas...across from "Hollygrove" -- Yeah, you got that right...if you want to be cute...you say "I'm from the Carrollton area"...if you wanna be down with your kinfolks...tell 'em straight up --I'm from "Pigeon Town" --I'm told it should be "Pension Town" -- but my kinfolks and I know it by the name of that nasty bird...the pigeon...and I'm sticking with that :)

To the point...Now that you know the details of where I'm from I have a question for one and all--Have you hugged a Katrina "SURVIVOR" lately? Have ya? OR now that the dust is settling--are you judging folks. Blaming every wayward crime on dem Katrina folks. Ooops...baby at the nursery caught a cold...gosh darn it, she must have got that from that new chile from New Orleans --uh huh...heard she had the "cooties"--Cat fight break out in Club Walmart on Panola ( and you know why they call it the "Club Walmart")...Two of dem Katrina folks...Lawd dem folks stealing everything...everything...and they talk funny too...(ok we do just a little)

Aww but no...Looking me right in my face and talkin' about my folks...Folks who left home without a single toothbrush... folks with big time degrees...like you and me...folks driving gas guzzling SUV's, sleek Mercedes and Lexus'...folks like you and me (naw not me on this one...)--folks with a little cash in the bank--just like--er you...folks with jobs...folks with no jobs...folks living from one paycheck to next --FOLKS JUST LIKE YOU AND ME...

Have you walked a mile in their shoes? Have you? You cannot fathom what is like to be completely uprooted as fast as you bat an eyelash...Yeah...they had their Mardi Gras...(I too thought it ridiculous...until...)--but they needed a release...a chance to sigh out loud...a chance to forget about all of the FEMA red tape...the never-ending hassles with insurance companies...trailers...and the lack thereof...living in strange places..with people who look like them...but JUDGE them.

Don't judge folks...ye who live from one paycheck to the next with bad credit a couple dollars in the bank and surviving because of the sheer grace of God. Don't judge, please don't judge...because you're judging my father and mother...two kind souls who don't meet strangers...who give unconditionally. You're judging my sister Mable---who held them all together like glue with her home completely destroyed...Kudos Mable...You're judging my sister Idell --with three young children under the age of 6...and no real address to call their own...imagine their lives...You're judging my brother Kenneth --the hardest working man I know...You're judging my brother Jason...who learned a valuable lesson when he escaped...yes escaped with just the clothes on his back....Katrina -- SURVIVORS....

Have you hugged a Katrina... SURVIVOR... lately? Find one and do it!