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Columns

After a difficult year, a time to reappraise

By LAVERNE HAMMOND
Published December 20, 2005

This fall I received a notice from the property manager of the apartment building in which I live in the Milwaukee area: A main pipe leading into our building had burst. As a result, the water to the entire building would have to be shut off for most of the day.

Later when I stepped into the elevator, I met two tenants who were complaining about the notice and the bother of having our water shut off. One lady moaned that she was attending a party that night and would be unable to take a shower when she returned from work.

After listening to a few more negative remarks, I turned to them and indignantly said, "What about the poor people in New Orleans? At least, although inconvenient, our situation is only temporary. We were told to draw water for the day. Can't you give yourself a sponge bath? That's what I did. I heated some of the water I drew, and it worked out for me."

There may have been more complaints from others in the building, but at least those two ladies sheepishly agreed that we didn't have it so bad.

When Hurricane Katrina hit the Gulf Coast, I was relieved when I learned that relatives who live in the New Orleans area were able to evacuate to relatives in Dallas and Houston. Many were not so fortunate. The images of people trapped on roofs without food and water were devastating. Some of the victims of Hurricane Katrina have not been able to return to their homes and still are living in hotels scattered across the country. Some lost everything, including loved ones.

This has been a tough year for many people across the globe. The year 2004 ended with a tsunami in the Indian Ocean. Throughout 2005 we have had tornadoes, cyclones and some of the worst hurricanes on record in the United States. Katrina, Wilma, and Rita devastated parts of Louisiana, Mississippi, Florida and Texas. Then an earthquake struck Pakistan, leaving thousands dead and homeless. Add to that list the ongoing wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and the terrorists attacks in Britain, France and elsewhere, and it was a year filled with tragedy and death.

No wonder our sense of security has been shaken.

Meanwhile, many of us also have been contending with our own personal disasters throughout the year. One widow I know has been worrying about running out of money. Another has been talking about her fear of growing old. We have fretted about our health, our children, our love life, our homes.

This year's larger disasters, however, should help us put some of these personal worries in context. In this country, most of us have jobs. Our children can go to school. We have water and food. We can shop, go out to dinner and enjoy our families. We sleep in our own beds every night.

We have it pretty good.

At the inauguration of Franklin D. Roosevelt, during the depth of the Great Depression when millions of Americans feared the worst, Roosevelt called for faith in America's future. "The only thing we have to fear is fear itself," he declared.

Perhaps now is the time for all of us to ask ourselves: What are our priorities? What really matters in our lives? Perhaps we should spend less time fearing the future and more time enjoying the present.

- LaVerne Hammond, who divides her time between Wisconsin and Florida, is at work on her memoirs. Write her in care of Seniority, St. Petersburg Times, P.O. Box 1121, St. Petersburg FL 33731.

[Last modified December 16, 2005, 12:40:06]