Disaster and calm

 

This probably was the town of Chimney Rock, where the river has been reconfigured into a close approximation of where it was before Hurricane Helene on Sept. 17, 2024. This was an Oct. 30 ABC news story.

A TV interview with a man outside his destroyed home and business.

Yes, many efforts have been made in the last month to bring back some of the order of roads that are connecting us. The biggest benefit remains how people came together with their neighbors (most for the first time) in this catastrophe throughout western North Carolina. Much remains to be done however.

While in my neck of the woods, some pretty leaves still give color around the buildings.

It's nice that these grounds had little damage from the storms. Kind of makes me grateful to live here!

Here is a video of Jennifer Berezan and others as they made her 2- hour long CD 10 years ago. "A Song for All Beings" Video is just six minutes.

In these Arms A Song for all Beings © (p) Jennifer Berezan I cannot turn my eyes, I cannot count the cost Of all that has been broken, all that has been lost I cannot understand, the suffering that life brings War and hate and hunger And a million other things When I've done all that I can And I try to do my part Let sorrow be a doorway Into an open heart And the light on the hills is full of mercy The wind in the trees it comes to save me This silence it will never desert me I long to hold the whole world in these arms May all beings be happy May all beings be safe May all beings everywhere be free

And here's the 2:15 hour concert: Song for All Beings

I listened to the whole concert...admittedly in short bursts. I loved it so much!

Today's quote:

When wealth is passed off as merit, bad luck is seen as bad character. This is how ideologues justify punishing the sick and the poor. But poverty is neither a crime nor a character flaw. Stigmatize those who let people die, not those who struggle to live.

-Sarah Kendzior, journalist and author (b. 1 Sep 1978)