Hi! I am now back home after spending the last week at a training session in Denver, CO. It is a gorgeous part of the country - much different than the highly populated suburban Maryland that I live in.

All the time that I was not in class, I spent glued to the television to get news of Katrina. My father and his wife live very near Picayune, MS. They actually evacuated to Jackson, MS during the passage of the storm. My father called me on Tuesday to let me know he was fine. He then called later in the week to say that they had returned home; their house is basically intact, but has a few trees on it. They have no power and no telepones or cell phones - that is why I have not been able to reach them. They had to cut brush away in order to get to their house. He last called me from Baton Rouge, where he had gone to try to get gasoline for his generator. My uncle's house, which is nearby, similarly did not get major damage. My father said other areas nearby are just devastated. Our family has a happy story - The good Lord was looking after them.

Words are not adequate to express how overwhelming the whole situation is; or how my heart goes out to all of those affected. It is so incredible that in this day and age, our country, with all its wealth and resources at its disposal, still has difficulty providing the needed assistance in a crisis situation. It certainly puts our minor annoyances in perspective. Maybe I'll be in a cheerier mood tomorrow. Margaret