My friend’s mother said since she has been in New Orleans she has noticed that everyone she speaks with mentions Katrina at some point or other in their conversation. I said, there it is. Today going to the Green Market on Magazine, I was speaking to a friend and she brought up Katrina. The milestone in so many of our lives. No wonder we all sprinkle our conversations with “Katrina.”
I do believe (granted through the lens of joy) that adversity is character building. I have been thinking of a friend who is dating a guy who grew up not wanting for anything, and he is bad news as well as unappreciative, even though he is a shiny object at first. I want my son to have character – to appreciate grace – although it would be nice for him to just know and not have to suffer.
This last decade has been all about suffering to a large degree – starting with 9/11 and weaving its way into Katrina and the market crashing and on and on, not to mention the personal challenges this decade has presented to me. It’s during the hard times that we become who we are. I am me!
Pain is inevitable. Suffering is optional. ~M. Kathleen Casey