I arrived in Lakeshore after twelve long hours of travel from CA. What a sight! In times past I might have described the scenery as somewhat bland, but the hurricane has most definitely left it with some flare. It's quite impressive, there is still a decent amount of leftover damage. Wildlife is just now starting to return to the area, vegetation is still quite young. Periodically groves of tall trees are spotted that survived the storm. Ninety five percent of all structures seen in the vicinity of where I'm staying are entirely new. The land the church is on, which is approximately two miles off shore, was supposedly 40ft under water when the hurricane blew through. I don't think I ever grasped until now the scale of hurricane katrina.
Lakeshore is an extremely poor community. I'm sure most residents live near or below the poverty line. At first glance, I believe serving this community for the summer will be a challenge. It has taken me quite outside of my comfort zone. Not in terms of the work that needs to be done, but the environment. The context is drastically different from the urban, intellectual, progressive, diverse bay area. I didn't realize until now, how I had never truely experienced life estranged from the luxuries and comforts of bustling city centers. I firmly believe God places us in challenging contexts for a reason; to bring us to question the status quo, challenging us to see life from yet another angle and hopefully to refine our value system, thus sanctifying it.
So anyway, we'll see what this summer has in store for me, wish me luck!
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