A first lesson

I'm not sure whether the sense of helplessness is increased or decreased by getting involved in disaster relief when the disaster is this monstrous. On one hand, it helps to get away from the TV images and do SOMEthing. On the other hand, coming face to face with the scope of the needs can be almost paralyzing. Our extended family has had the blessing of being involved in service to the New Orleans evacuees in several ways during the past 48 hours, and I think many of us have come to at least one conclusion: it helps to find a corner of need and concentrate on creative ways to meet those needs rather than standing too far back and looking at the big picture for too long at a time. One person, one family, really can make a difference. . .but it might not feel that way when looking at tens of thousands of people at once. I'm sure that we'll all learn a lot of lessons along the way, but this has been one of the first.