The silver lining

As I've stated before, I'm an optimist. I have to find that one, lonely nugget of good that makes any bad situation seem bright. It's both a gift and a curse.

We have six kindergartens at my school. So far (in the past few days) we have one teacher whose father has died, one teacher who is at his dying mother's bedside, and we have another who has broken her foot.

Almost all of my class are ill with the crud that one of them so generously passed around last week.

There has been endless rain, and my classroom is leaking.

All I can say is that I thank God that I'm alive, my family are all safe, happy, and healthy. My home is cluttered, but still standing, and not underwater like some in neighboring states. I have food and water for my family, and I'm not displaced from my home, and living in a shelter.

I have air conditioning, sanitary water for drinking, and working services to my home. I think, at this point, all my worries about sniffly noses and "where are my shoes?" are "small stuff."

I thank God that I'm able to worry about the "small stuff", and not the "big stuff."

For all of the people whose lives were changed forever by Katrina, may you soon be able to worry again about the "small stuff." We wish you love, hope, blessings, and pray that you can put this horrific experience behind you. For those of you that lost family members -- we grieve with you. We will not let them be forgotten. We promise that.