Nawlins, A phoenix to rise from the ashes of Katrina

The pictures are hard to look at, the stories are even harder to listen, the imagination can't even fathom the experience of living through Katrina.

I sit and think back to my recent trip there and how much fun it was. Then I see scenes on the TV of places I hung out, streets I walked down, and wonder "Will there be jazz festival next year? Did Robert Walter and the Twentieth Congress, Galactic, The Meters, Dr. John, and all the other Musicians of Nawlins get out of the city safely? I wonder will all the beautiful architecture be able to be salvaged? How much history has been lost? But more important than anything how many lives have been lost?"

I remember briefly meeting Mayor Nagin at the Mayor's Office festival, Now with his city in ruins and on every news channel while they are hounding him for sound bites while he stresses over his beloved city and its people.

My heart goes out to the City of Nawlins and the rest of the area hit by Katrina. If there ever was a more unique city in this country it is Nawlins, If there is ever a place that could come back and be reborn from the ashes like a raspy voiced phoenix singing the songs of Satchamo it is Nawlins. There is a vibe that only that plot of land can contain, there is community that has survived with it's own unique culture that will only strengthen with this experience. There is still a city of New Orleans, though it is still underwater and may not resemble the Big Easy, most of its people are still alive to carry on the tradition.