Do you know what it means to miss New Orleans?

NOTE: Four years ago this month, Hurricane Katrina flooded New Orleans and changed my life forever. I spent the next few years writing and publishing countless articles about the devastation and recovery for the Baptist Press and for New Orleans Seminary. However, I have not published many of my own thoughts about the storm. I have told many other people’s Katrina stories, I just haven’t told mine. It’s time to start telling my story.

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Kimberly, Jonathan and I moved to New Orleans in 2003. We moved so I could be closer to work, not because we loved the place. We didn’t hate it either. We were intrigued by New Orleans – maybe even a bit perplexed. And we had our guard up. For a while, we had a “levee,” if you will, around our hearts. By August 2005, the city was becoming “home.” We were beginning to let down our guard.

As Hurricane Katrina bore down on New Orleans, Kimberly and I loaded our van with a few clothes and Jonathan and we left. We had packed so much better for Hurricane Ivan a year earlier.

Ivan was supposed to be the “Big One” – the one that would fill the city with water for weeks. The “soup bowl” theory was widely espoused on the local television stations as Ivan loomed. The theory prophesied a Katrina-like event. At the time, I openly questioned the doomsday scenario. As Ivan churned through the Gulf of Mexico, I sent Kimberly and Jonathan to safety. I stayed. I stayed for work or a thrill or for some other crazy reason. I anxiously watched the local TV weather reports as Ivan charted a course directly toward New Orleans. There were plenty of tense moments. At the last possible hour, Ivan veered to the east and devastated parts of Alabama and Florida. That was 2004.

Hurricanes always miss New Orleans – Ivan missed, Lily missed, Camille missed, so many others missed. That was on my mind the day I packed for Katrina. “Hurricanes always miss New Orleans.” I left because Kimberly didn’t want me to stay this time. This one felt different than Ivan, she said. Still we took no photos or important papers – just a few clothes for the weekend. I didn’t even pack my passport. I simply left the city with my family, expecting to return home in three or four days.

The rest is history. The city narrowly escaped the worst of the storm only to flood after the levees failed. Thousands lost their lives. My heart was torn by the images of suffering of those who did not leave. First, I was angry at looters, then at the people who could have left, but didn't, and finally at the needless suffering due to the slow response. I still get angry about all that happened.

Sure, I was upset that our 1993 Honda Civic was under about nine feet of water. It was a good second car. But most of all, I wondered about the little deaf man who lived across from the seminary I’d met the year before. I wondered about the folks who worked at “The Bakery” – our favorite po’boy shop near campus. Did they make it out? Are they okay?

My heart was exposed – my ‘levee’ had failed. New Orleans had rushed in – the city and its people had gotten to me. I longed to be home – and “home” finally meant New Orleans. I wanted to hear New Orleans accents. I wanted to be called “darling” at the checkout counter. I wanted to "make groceries" at the Gentilly Winn-Dixie. I wanted my beignets. I wanted my shrimp po’boys.

I began to identify with the people of New Orleans in a new way. Together, we were sharing a difficult experience. I was part of the Great New Orleans Diaspora.

For the next eight months Kimberly, Jonathan and I lived in a one-bedroom retirement apartment in Decatur, Ga., an Atlanta-area suburb. People treated us well in Atlanta, but it wasn’t home. During those eight months, as I traveled to the New Orleans often, I found my soul. I began sensing a deep calling to invest my life in the city.

Finally, we made it back to New Orleans in April 2006 and the quest began.

What was that noise?

Day 8: June 1

We traveled 460+ miles on Day 7 (May 31) and we were planning to travel 608 miles from Mom's house (17 miles from Calvin, Okla.) to the Gentilly Terrace neighborhood of New Orleans -- home. We got up and going by 4:30 a.m. Our GPS gave a New Orleans arrival estimate of 2:56 p.m. But the car problems that developed Saturday had not gone away, in fact, it was getting worse.

Just outside of Longview, Texas, something broke. We knew we needed to stop. We found a Chrysler dealer and awaited the verdict. I thought it was an ignition or fuel management problem because it wasn't getting hot, just running rough. The service manager suspected the same and checked the injectors and a computer chip. Unfortunately, those things were fine. An hour and a half later he returned to tell us we had broken a valve. A big time problem with lots of labor. So we are here for the night and most of the next day.

Here we are in Texas, relying on the kindness of strangers and what was Jonathan wearing … an Oklahoma Sooners T-shirt. If you don’t get the irony of that, we don’t follow college sports.

Would an epic journey be complete without a car breakdown? Here is a short survey of my breakdowns on epic journeys:

1983 - Car breakdown on the way home from my first beach trip (in Texas)*
1989 - Bus breakdown on the way home from my first mission trip (in Texas ... I see a trend)**
1998 - Car breakdown on my way home from my first trip to NYC (in Maryland)***
1999 - Car breakdown on my way home from a trip to D.C (in Maryland)***
2005 - Bus breakdown in Israel (on the border near Syria and Lebanon)
2009 - Valve failure on the way home from the Grand Canyon (in Texas)

* I was 13, riding with my pastor and his family in a 1978 VW van.
** Riding in an ancient church van.
*** Our beloved Honda Civic only broke down twice in 186,000 miles. Both times in Maryland. We lost that car to Katrina.

The Long Road Home

Day Seven: May 31

The road is always longer on the way home. You've seen all the sights and experienced all the fun things and now all you can think about is making it home. No bed is better than your own -- that includes the wonderful beds in Wigwam Motel and Motel Safari. By the way - this is the eighth day since we left Oklahoma on our Grand Canyon/Route 66 Trip. It's actually been 10 days since we left home.

I miss my bed. I miss my Lazy Boy chair. Most of all, I miss my dog

Random notes from the road:
- My nephew Mitchell tried to get every semi truck we passed to honk (100s of trucks). The first six days he only managed to get three honks. On day 7, he got 11 honks.
- I think Mitchell's right bicep is larger than his left from all the honk motions he made on the trip.
- Talking with the people along the way has been the best part of the journey Americana is nothing with out Americans. We also encountered many nice Europeans, Asians and other international travelers.
- It's really windy from Oklahoma City to Albuquerque.
- We have traveled 3,100 miles since leaving NOLA
- Jonathan snores

On the Road Again

Day Six: May 30

We had a great night’s sleep at the Wigwam Motel. After a few more pictures of the unique accommodations, we went to breakfast at Joe and Aggie’s Café in Holbrook. Another great place … more good food and more good conversation with the owner and employees. We even got to hear the town old timers talk about the area’s best gasoline prices. It was a little hard to leave Holbrook … it is a great place.

In Albuquerque the van developed a rough idle. I think I got bad gasoline. We are praying the rough idle goes away with that tank of gas.

We finally made it to Tucumcari, N.M., for the night. Another unique motel – Motel Safari. The motel has been remodeled with retro décor as well as flat screen TVs. The free wireless (that I am using right now) was also nice. More great conversation at the front desk – the people along Route 66 have been so friendly. They really love what they do and where they do it.

More later … it is past time for bed.


Today’s Tally
2 smashed pennies collected
400+ miles traveled


Random Notes from the days four - six
- Funny business names: "We Cook Pizza and Pasta," "Want Water? LLC," and "Big Man w/a Big Van Moving."
- Rock Squirrels are the most dangerous animals to Grand Canyon visitors. 200-300 people per year are bitten by Rock Squirrels
- Holbrook and Tucumcari have been our favorite towns along Route 66.

Beautiful World Part III & The Right Place at the Right Time

Day Five: May 29

Wow! Wow! Wow! We had a number of great stops during our second day at the South Rim of the Grand Canyon. We would have loved another day at the Canyon.

We decided to drive out to Holbrook and find a place to stay for the night. We had tried to reserve rooms at the Wigwam Motel several weeks before our trip. We found out that they fill up months in advance. During our earlier trip through Holbrook, the gift shop was closed, so we stopped there again before going to look for rooms.

We were in the lobby for several minutes before I got the courage to ask "Do you have three rooms?" The lady at the desk looked relieved. She said a group had just canceled ... she had three. It was great. We were happy and she was happy. Jonathan even turned on the charm and chatted with the lady. When I went to pay for his post card she said he could have it for free because he was so cute.

We ate dinner at the Wayside Café – a little Mexican and American place. Kimberly and I ate Navajo Tacos – Indian fry bread covered with the traditional taco toppings plus green chili peppers. Good stuff. It was near closing time by the time our food arrived, but the owner and her daughter came out and talked with us for 15 or 20 minutes. They were great folks. By the time we left the Wayside Café – we had fallen in love with Holbrook.


Today’s Tally
0 smashed pennies collected
1 Mule Deer spotted
More lizards, rock squirrels and ravens spotted
I slept in a Wigwam

Beautiful World Part II

Day Four: May 28

Grand Canyon

Wow! The Grand Canyon is ... well ... Grand. Awe inspiring. It is so much more beautiful than I ever could have imagined. When you tip-toe up to the edge, you can't help but feel your own smallness. The creation truly displays God's majesty. What else can you say ... I know the photos won't do it justice.

Today’s Tally
0 smashed pennies collected
6 California Condors spotted
2 Big Horn Sheep spotted (one was a baby)
3 Mule Deer spotted
Lots of lizards, rock squirrels and ravens spotted