Student Publishing Program ::

Erik Schembor

Standing Up Through Disaster

Katrina,
Barreling through the gulf,
an unstoppable force of wind and water,
on an unchangeable trajectory,
where is it going?
my city,
New Orleans.

Winds raging,
uprooting trees, houses, people,
water surging, rushing,
a torrent of liquid destruction.
the hurricane at long last dissipates,
done with its devastation,
but leaving an unbearable stench of death and decimation.

Will New Orleans emerge?
Seeing the chaos and pandemonium,
in a city left ravaged by a merciless storm,
I would think,
No.

But year after year I return,
I see more houses restored,
damaged buildings reconstructed,
and a growing migration of New Orleanians,
coming back to their city.

And the spirit of New Orleans,
full of celebration and jubilation,
floods back into the city.
Mardi Gras returns as people flood into the streets,
pouring over the levees.

[TABLE OF CONTENTS, LHS CLASS OF 2011 EDITION]