Reality Check

What is reality? We may not agree on what we individually define as reality for the simple fact that the facets of reality are sometimes subjective and compiled with the discrepancies in our knowledge of the world or better yet if our knowledge or belief of our knowledge of the world is solely based on our interpretations of that "truth' or is it the "truth" beyond any human interpretations. Well we may never come to terms on the reality of the world or the truth of the world but what we can all agree on is the reality of the disaster in New Orleans called Hurricane Katrina. As my spring break, i alongside 18 others from MCLA (Massachusetts College of LIberal Arts) volunteered with the National Wildlife Federation (NWF) and together with other student groups from Miami University of Ohio, Oklahoma State, Taiwan, South Dakota, Portland-Oregon and many more (totaling and sometimes surpassing about 100 students daily) were responsible for planting 25000 trees (oak and cypress) in the Fontainbleu State Park in Mandeville ( on the city limits of New Orleans) which lost 90% of its trees thanks to Hurricane Katrina. The trip was eye-opening for it gave me and many others a perspective on how much the lives of New Orleans and the State of Louisiana were affected. Even after two years and counting, the devastation is still evident by the number of destroyed houses and bare foundations left standing in the neighborhoods of New Orleans. I was brought to tears listening to the stories of habitants who lost everything but are still steadfast in their faith in God (something or someone we still haven't come to terms to...His existence or none thereof) and are moved by the volunteer work and dedication the youth and many others are showing towards the rebuilding efforts. I write this blog to offer a voice for those in New Orleans that a lot still needs to be done and the reality of the matter is that although we may not necessarily have ties to the state of Louisiana, we kinda owe it to humanity and the people affected by this tragedy by doing whatever we can to help rebuild. In the words of Lady Chase who has owned and operated the Dooky Chase restaurant in New Orleans since 1942 " “If you come down here and don’t put a hammer to a nail, that’s ok. Just come. You being here is a push, and we need a push. We’ve have a lot of work to do down here.” and that sums it all......doing anything is something worthy of helping.