1. Crisis to Crisis:   I keep waiting for things to get back to normal, but they never do.  I have been waiting a very long time, since WWII, even.  Maybe there is no such thing as “normal”.  Certainly, it is not unusual for us to observe that there are those around us, in our country, and in our world who need help.  

Nor is it atypical for us to find ways to provide help.

2. Heart to Heart:   During this latest crisis, I begin to understand why I am called a "bleeding heart."  For days during the TV coverage of the hurricane damage in our southeast, I felt drained and weak, as if my own blood was indeed leaking.  I felt the same way after the tsunami, after 9/11, all the way back to the dreadfulness of WWII, when I was very young.

I feel that somehow, we are all connected through the tides and the rhythm of our heart streams.  That would explain why I feel as if my blood is being spilled.  When we rush to staunch the wound of another, we are saving ourselves.  Pablo Cassals describes it best "We are all leaves of a tree and the tree is humanity." 

I know you feel the same, or you wouldn’t cry at movies like you do.  Your heart wouldn’t constrict when you hear of a little child who does not have what he needs for his very first day of school or even adequate food or clothing.  I know you.  One of the benefits of my job is that I am cocooned in a situation where the kindest, most compassionate people cross paths.  I live and work where helping each other is the norm.

3. Dare to Do:  In managing our lives, we do seem to go from crisis to crisis, from emergency  to emergency.   Besides being prepared to help each other where needed, maybe Katrina is  reminding us to do what we must to be prepared to take care of ourselves and our families if disaster strikes, either from terrorists, accidents or nature. By coincidence, September is National Preparedness Month.

http://www.njhomelandsecurity.com/ provides much information, including several checklists.  They advise that 1) We make a plan, and 2) pack a kit, with suggestions for both.

In addition to being prepared to take personal responsibility, we as citizens need to know exactly what preparations are in place at municipal, county, state and federal levels.

4. Be Prepared to Take Steps!  One of my heroes lives next door.  He was                       (cont.)

working in NYC on 9/11.   Noting what  had happened and that, among other things, transportation was halted, he began to walk towards a bridge, then across that bridge and on into New Jersey.  In fact, he walked for hours.  Along the way, others fell into line and began to follow him.   He is one of the Greater Generation, a WWII Vet. 

5. Help to Cope:   Children are especially vulnerable.  Most heart wrenching for me is the effect on the children in the ravaged areas of our Southeast.  As I see them being cared for, physically and emotionally, I am thankful and hopeful.  For children here, we seek ways to help them cope with what they observe and hear about Katrina’s damage.

At the NAEYC website, http://www.naeyc.org/families/disaster.asp, is good advice, “Helping Young Children After a Disaster.”

Included:  Make sure children aren’t over-exposed to media coverage of the disaster; If they show anxiety, recognize that young children are most fearful when they do not understand what is going on; Offer reassurance, stability, the chance to express feelings, also activities that are relaxing and/or relieve stress, including physical play, and play with clay, water, sand.

We have found that providing crayons and paper and then asking the young children to tell stories about the pictures they draw can be informative and the basis for valuable discussion.  Offering pictures of people with a range of expressions and asking what the person is feeling and why is another good resource.

6. Garret and Connor, Two Great Kids!  As I drove around Hightstown on Saturday, I was thinking of these things.    As I mused, I saw two young boys, age 7 as it turned out, selling cold soda, hawking their wares at full voice, sporting their handmade sign, proclaiming that full proceeds were going to the “American Red Cross Hurricane Relief Fund”.  The boys were Garret Christino and his friend and neighbor, Connor Kraft.  The two sets of parents said it was Garret’s idea.  They rallied right around the idea and offered yard sale items as well.   Connor’s Dad, Gabe, pointed out that the boys were making a goodly amount, since most people added a contribution to the dollar for the soda.   Congratulations to Garret and Connor for their loving, compassionate work, and to their parents