“Do not go after the past, Nor lose yourself in the future. For the past no longer exists, And the future is not yet here. By looking deeply at things just as they are, in this moment, here and now, the seeker lives calmly and freely. You should be attentive today, for waiting until tomorrow is too late. Death can come and take us by surprise-- How can we gainsay it? The one who knows how to live attentively night and day is the one who knows the best way to be independent.” -Bhaddekaratta Sutra

I am incredulous as to all the rhetoric over who’s to blame for what, concerning the events that surrounded Hurricane Katrina. I think the political aftermath has been almost as damaging and will be as costly and far reaching as the storm itself. I have read and watched commentators from the far left and the far right. I have actually heard a few view points grounded in common sense, reality and practicality.

With the onset and subsequent clean up after Hurricane Rita, some of this may be alleviated. Having been so recently through such a catastrophic event, having troops and aid already in place in the near vicinity, Rita downsizing to a category three, and the masses having a relatively short attention span, a lot of damage control for the “governments” image could take place.

The mentality of the masses never ceases to astound me. Most of the time when a governmental agency is involved in a situation or created (as in Home Land Security) or new legislation is proposed, the masses band together to admonish “Big Brother” for trying to step in and interfere with the lives of the citizenry of this great nation. In the event of personal tragedy, all of a sudden the ‘government’ takes on the aura of a wealthy grandfatherly-type that people look to, to bail them out.

I am not so right wing that I don’t see the fundamental good that these programs can offer. On the flip side, I do know people that know how to work the system and work it effectively. There are times when events like catastrophic illness depletes an individuals or a families life savings. Everything that they have worked hard for all their lives is gone, eaten up by medical expenditures.

But that’s the difference, things that have taken a lifetime to acquire are gone. These people worked hard all their lives, paid their taxes, took care of their own. Bad things do happen to good people. It’s how people respond to these times of tribulation that brings forth their basic character (or the flaws in them).

Everyone goes through hard times. A one time (or some time) hand up is not the same thing as able bodied people looking for the government to take responsibilty for the eventual outcome of themselves or their families during this crisis. Oh, by the way, unless you haven’t noticed, WE the people ARE the government. It is our tax dollars that will be used.

A couple of years ago, a friend and I volunteered through the American Red Cross disaster services and went to Ohio to help with clean up after a tornado. Granted, the circumstances of the volunteers during clean up is NOTHING like what the crews are dealing with in the south. The damage of course was not on the same scale. The time it took to rebuild their lives was not comparable to the amount of time that it will take in Louisiana.

There are some things that they do have in common. The people in this community also lost all of their personal belongings. Some lost neighbors. Some had family to stay with, some didn’t. Yes, it was easier to get supplies to these people. The natural obstacles weren't there. Contaminated flood waters, broken levies, fires, ect. There also wasn't massive looting, there were no snipers firing at rescue workers, there were no murders, there were no rapes. Everywhere we went, people were back in their neighborhoods, sifting through what shreds of their belongings that were left. The dark cloud of victimization didn’t hang over the community.

If You live in the mid-west, you deal with tornados. If You live in California, earthquakes. Some places deal with raging wild fires, others, severe droughts or flooding are more common occurrences. It’s how people respond to the hand that has been dealt them that separate the Men from the boys (or in the vixen vernacular; the Foxes from the hounds). For some, courage, gratitude (for the things that they didn‘t lose, like their lives), strength, perseverance surface. For others, baser characteristics surface.

Maybe the Reverends Jackson and Sharpton have the right idea. Open the nations coffers to the “victims” of this natural disaster. Make the government responsible for rebuilding their homes, for supplying their wants and needs. If they have a better life than they had before, wonderful, that’s the luck of the draw. Then when all the countries resources have been funneled to and expended in this one area, everyone can all be on the same level playing field. But I have no doubt whatsoever that the industrious and resourceful will once again rise to the top. The rest, well, sort of reminds me of the fable of the ant and the grasshopper.

If this sounds cold and unsympathetic, it’s not. Things like this effect the good and the bad, the just and the unjust in equal measure. Is it a terrible thing to lose ones home? Absolutely it is! My parents lost their home to a fire in 1988. It was probably the most devastating event in their lives, aside from losing loved ones. A loss of life can never be comparable to the loss of material goods. Was this a sad and horrific event in this countries history? Absolutely it is! But, it will be up to each individual to make wise choices in the way they decide (yes, that infers conscious decisions) to move forward from this point on.

They can use their misfortune as an excuse to be defeatist. Or they can accept the challenges before them and say “Ok, it was bad, really, really bad for awhile, but I survived this. I am now a better, stronger person for the experience.” The rest of the country is solidly behind them offering food, supplies, money, man-power to help them over come their obstacles. That’s what we as Americans do best.

Til next time...Love, sassy v  

© sassy vixen1 2005

The Original

“Give a man a fish; you have fed him for today. Teach a man to fish; and you have fed him for a lifetime”—Author unknown

The Improvements

“Give a man a fish; you have fed him for today. Teach a man to fish; and you will not have to listen to his incessant whining about how hungry he is.”—Author unknown

“Give a man a fish; you have fed him for today. Teach a man to fish; and you can sell him fishing equipment.”—Author unknown

“Give a man a fish; you have fed him for today. Teach a man to use the Net and he won't bother you for weeks.”—Author unknown

“Teach a man to fish and you feed him for a lifetime. Unless he doesn't like sushi—then you also have to teach him to cook.”—Auren Hoffman, Herald Philosopher

“Give a man a fish; you have fed him for today. Teach a man to fish, and he will sit in the boat and drink beer all day.”—OldFox

“Give a man a fish; you have fed him for today. Teach a man to fish; and you have fed him for a lifetime. Teach a man to sell fish and he eats steak.”—Author unknown

(http://www.amatecon.com/fish.html)