If you think anything about Katrina was fun you are either
blinded by youth, very confused, unfeeling or plain stupid.
You certainly can't be as religious as your page would lead people to believe.
Personally, I see nothing fun in people losing their lives, family or friends.
There is no fun in having to start your life over from scratch
because your whole way of living has been erased in a flash.
It is not fun to sweat in 90 plus heat, be thirsty and have no water.
It is not fun to see fear in your child's eyes while trying not to let them see yours.
Being shipped like so much excess baggage to places you know
you are unwanted does not define fun.
Not knowing the whereabouts of or if your loved ones are alive or dead is NOT fun.
Coming home to what is really no longer a home is not fun.
To find all you've worked for your entire life buried under mounds of
smelly mud and mile high multi-colored mold, not fun.
It's not the material things that can be replaced.
It's baby pictures, pictures of great-grandparents, the crooked ashtray
your kid made in 7th grade, the backyard garden you tended with your grands.
The garden that has been fertilized by bloated dead animals.
There is no fun living in darkened neighborhoods patrolled by military with
big guns or looters who somehow though you don't want to, you do understand.
Where is the fun of watching infinite sadness, as people finally bury their dead
who've sat months before being released for a Christian burial.
There's not an ounce of fun in not hearing children's laughter.
Nor is it fun hearing babies scream in the throes of a nightmare they can't comprehend.
I could go on and on about the not fun things about Katrina but, I won't.
Just let me say to Aajdj, my prayers go out to you and Holden.
I sincerely hope you and your town never has as much "fun" as
New Orleans did.
Perhaps if you spend less time shooting things and more time conversing
with God you'll really find the true meaning of fun.
Author notes
I wrote this in reply to a guestbook entry by Aajdj.
My first mind told me to go to his page and blast him.
I decided to do this instead and ask the opinion of all readers of this.
Am I being overly sensitive?
The man in this photo is a Katrina Survivor.
Comments
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It's the detail in this piece
that makes it so powerful.
"Coming home to what is really no longer a home is not fun.
To find all you've worked for your entire life buried under mounds of
smelly mud and mile high multicolored mold, not fun.
It's not the material things that can be replaced.
It's baby pictures, pictures of great-grandparents, the crooked ashtray
your kid made in 7th grade, the backyard garden you tended with your grands.
The garden that has been fertilized by bloated dead animals."
Enough to move this reader to tears. Certainly not fun. A superb retort.
Danni
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Wow. This has to be the best "snarky" reply I've read. Certaintly it is among the most well written
You capture a lot of emotion in this write. I do not feel that you are being overly sensitive, but that you are completely justified
thank you for sharing,
best wishes.
Zach Estel. -
kudos to you D
no you were not being overly sensitive.....you gave Aajdj just what his uncaring; uncouth, uneducated, unfeeling, a--hole just what he asked 4 when he fixed his brainwaves to say that the Katrina storm was fun......what planet did this moron come from.....he certainly isn't from planet earth.......I didn't see any fun in the fiasco that mother nature bestowed upon New Orleans when Katrina hit it's shores to rip up you'll levee in that manner....I'm feeling every word you put to this Aajdj was very much so deserved.....he should be somewhere buring his head in the sand......love peace & harmony to you Ms. DH
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Profound...
"He Said Katrina Was Fun"
Outstanding ponderings and presentation... Statement of facts.
In respect and admiration,
Andre Emmanuel Bendavi ben-YEHU
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I'm from florida. I live Four hours from New Orleans and I take a trip evey year to the Quarter. Every year I notice little things that have chnaged, gotten better, or just stopped existing. I have seen the kids playing in the fire hydrants during the good times and people bathing in them in the bad. I saw the devistaion first hand, and see it every year when I visit.
New Orleans suffered a terrible tragedy, with massive lost both finacially, physiaclly, emotionally, spiritually, and mentally. Things in that city will never be the same. And I think you would have to be heartless not to see the pain and care. -
UK here
So I can only watch with horror as this unfurled on the news - you definately are not being overly sensitive at all - And I couldn't put the last line better myself !!!
Perhaps if you spend less time shooting things and more time conversing
with God you'll really find the true meaning of fun.
THOUGH I am not religious the latter is preferable to the former.
A very well thought out and considered write - I would have done what you first thought of and blasted him! -
Not fun for Cats, either.
Tiki Cat
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Are you f*****g kidding me? Hell no You aint being too sensitive. Aajdj wasnt being sensitive enough or he just aint wound too tightly..one or the other. I would have been so offended if I was you. I;m from Daytona Beach, Florida so I've seen my share of hurricanes, but nothing on that scale. I couldnt even fathom how devistating that must have been. At the time I was dating a guy who had a tree service, so of course a hurricane is like gold to him. Him and his buddies packed up and left the day after the rains stopped. when he got there and saw the horror he came back. I mean he was scared. They had to sleep in shifts with a gun just to protect the gas they had brought with them. Any way, great write Gypsy...I feel your pain.
Shannon Rose
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The truth is anyone with a good heart should feel complete compassion for anyone else's pain. I really love how you express your feelings without holding back.
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You are definetly NOT being overly sensitive. Aajadj was being stupid, ignorant and insensitive to this horrid disaster. Because I can see the feeling you put into this it is a wonderful poem,. Sometimes our best writes are fuelled with the most acute emotions
Evinde -
xD
yes, hes an asshole for that.
you aren't being overly sensitive, your reaction is very christian, trying to make someone understand instead of just ripping them a new one.
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HOODWINKED! ! !
Tell Him to read my poem called "Katrina" it will show
him how "funny" it was
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Hoodwinked!
Powerful verse which gets to the crux of the matter:
"the backyard garden you tended with your grands.
The garden that has been fertilized by bloated dead animals."
You skillfully pain an image of despair. No one should belittle the suffering endured by victims of Katrina.
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Well done girl, you let everyone know the truth of what people were left to face in a country that we are lead to believe is the best at everything. No matter what it is, the ordinary people pay the biggest cost. Your self control at some ignorant comment is superb. There is no way to get inside of someones head though, no matter what you do. He will grow up eventually and real life will hurt him too one day. You are one strong lady, I admire your strength of character and your writing. Sheila
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welldone...
i cant really comment to this, you've written it well
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human tragedy is not fun and to insinuate that it is or was is asinine to the tenth degree.
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I can't imagine anyone saying Katrina was fun,, unless he meant fun in a horrific, tragic, debilitating way? I live in southwestern Missouri
and even this far up we had Katrina refugees staying in shelters. My heart goes out to you! As humans we can't stop Mother Nature but AS humans we should be able to stop the worst of human nature... it should of never happened that way.
laurie
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Not one word is overly sensitive.
Joe
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Oh my, it is beyond comprehension how another human being could conceive the catastrophe that was Katrina as " fun"
You did well to avoid a rant but to portray imagery and emotion that left little to the imagination, it's all here, the devastation, destruction, the hopelessness of having reality replaced by a living nightmare.
I read of those that rolled up their sleeves and dived in those communal burial waters to reclaim the bloated bodies so that they may be given dignified burials and no, I wouldn't wish any of these scenes on any other human beings but I do wish there was an all ecompassing empathy and understanding from those fortunate enough to have never experienced this.
Your poem is a testimony to what should be remembered, the cost of human suffering .
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This proves that it's probably best to not get on your bad side. ;(
There's so much emotion in. It's insane seeing points of view like this, because you won't see this on the news when hearing about natural disasters and you won't see it on the internet and so on. Thank you for sharing. -
Happy to have tapped into your fertile mind and brilliant writing. Very down to reality and big on truth, all sensible and filled with your amazing wit. I feel like crying about Katrina and it's been awhile... new things to cry about but the hurt must still be there for you guys who were there.
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This is the most outstanding moving compelling piece i have ever read, My family and i watched of course on tv and prayed for you guys, lit candles, but untill now, i never really felt the hugeness of it
thankyou, for teaching this little fish humility
I wish peace and hope to you and yours, truly not empty words but truly
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Very powerful
I wouldn't exactly classify this as a poem since it really didn't follow the pattern of one. However, you really did say a lot, and your words really struck home in a reader. I don't know who this Aajdj is, but I guess you were pretty angry at his ignorance to come up with this. You stated your piece, stood your ground, and managed to really make a person think twice about how life isn't always fair, but there are people out there who rise above the occasion and try to make their bad situation better. Great job, and you certainly deserve some applause from me!
Connor
P.S. Thanks for commenting on one of my poems, it really does mean a lot to me.
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I don't think you are being overly sensitive at all! I was born in New Orleans and I think you captured a lot of feelings really well. I also think that you are able to write down what you want to say in a very eloquent way, that is understandable and fabulous to read.
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No your not being overly sensitive, you have every right to be pissed.
And wow! You made me feel like I was there. This was really good!
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OVERSENSITIVE????? NO,,, NO WAY,,,, You are right on HERE!!!! FUN???? What? yes, tell him where to kiss,,, and then DON'T GIVE HIM THE PLEASURE,,,,,My blood preasure is raised, at this point,,, well written and you conveyed you point BEAUTIFULLY!!!!! th
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this poem was so true. How the hell did it all happen? It will take years for the city and people to recover. We had relatives stay with us for several months. I was glad we were able to help. At one time we had seven dogs and three parrots in the house. What a circus. It went well and absolutely no arguements. God was in a corner somewhere helping I just know it.
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no your not being overly sensitive.
i agree with you -
Well
It makes me sad to see many of todays youth with such cold emotions. Any tragedy, whether it was Katrina or the WTC, where many lives were lost & even many more sufffered emotionally and spiritually afterward cannot & should not be classified as fun. We are taking understanding, compassion, empathy & God out of the equation in todays world. & the end result is a cold & callous youth. What a shame. but great write. Please continue, for your words are needed.
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Oh. This is a very interesting poem that you have going on here.
It sounds like you've run across someone that said something to really upset you. I was very surprised with your second line because I think that it's true that youth makes us think things are fun that really aren't. I just never thought about that reason before. I thought you made lots of good points in this though. You did a good job in expressing yourself here.
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Breathe
GVO, You did the right thing in taking it in and putting it out..DON'T ASK OUR OPINION DAMMIT..Write, look'em in the eye and dare them to do any better!! Each an every voice is important...there will always be detractors..let it roll girl, let it roll -
I can only hope that your answer to him got through, but I honestly doubt it. My heart and prayers go out to everyone who was affected by Katrina. My only other suggestion would be to send a copy of this to our illustrious former president, who also seemed intent on having fun while the rest of the country was slowly dying.
Soldier on, girl. Soldier on. -
You did the right thing.
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Way to go.
You know I love a good rant, but this one was needed and right on. I feel like ranting over things other people are so dumb about. I feel you did a good job in telling him. There is nothing fun about cancer, hurricanes, tornadoes and people dying for nothing. When that becomes fun, I would hate to see a bad time.
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The pictures that we saw on the news of the aftermath of Katrina were gut-wrenching—as is your response here. Someone who can make flippant comments about a tragedy such as this has clearly never lost everything, and I applaud you for testament to loss (and to your survival). Thank you for sharing this. God bless.
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RIGHT On!!
After reading all of your words I also had to go to this persons page and was left totally clueless as to who this person could be to say such a thing. Not having lived through it and being a spectator, as most of the world, it was not even close to being fun. You are far more understanding than I think I would be. I would love to feature this if you don't mind. Be Blessed, Conni
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No I do not think that you were being overly sensitive. Some people just don't no when to stop talking. The person who had no sympathy should get a serious reality check.
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Interesting
I lived thru "Andrew" in 92. It was a life altering experience. I have not seen the poets' page that you are refering to nor am I knowledgeable as to his/her comments about "Katrina". But the truth be told, No horendous thorms are not fun and they do tend to cause a lot of pain and suffering. "BOO".
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some have odd ways of showing their fear and grief
and KATRINA...
was certainly one of the Greatest Violent Storms
that claimed the lives of too many.
Our heart salutes you for the courage to live
and remember....
and may your heart feel pity....
for another poet...who was jealous of your strength
and heart to survive it!
ears/Seattle
odd isn't it?
that someone would respond
jokingly..intimidated
by your strength of survival.
ears/Seattle
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No, you are not being oversensitive...I hope you are well, all things considered, in spite of the hurricane. Good write!
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No. I don't think you're being overly sensitive. I think that you portrayed what you went through very well.
I'm sorry that you had to go through that and I'm sorry that you have to put up with people saying stuff like that to you. I don't think you're being overly sensitive at all - and I'm from Iowa. I wasn't affected much at all by Katrina.
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