Five Years Post Katrina

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Louisiana, Mary Griggs, Rant

(c) by Mary Griggs

I evacuated from New Orleans around 10 p.m. on Saturday, August 27, 2005. On that Monday, while the storm was making landfall along Pearl River, I was in Alabama watching the waves from Wolf Bay crash against the pine trees in my parent’s backyard. I was almost two hundred miles from the epicenter of the storm and there were still hurricane force winds and a storm surge that brought water to within three feet of their back door.

When I left, I had only taken my dog and enough clothing and supplies for three days. I fully expected to be back in the city that care forgot by the end of the week. But the next morning, the reports started to trickle out about some flooding near one of the canals.

Not knowing was hard. It took me until the beginning of October to finally make my way across Lake Ponchartrain to see the damage for myself. The only hurricane damage was from my neighbor’s tree falling on my roof. It took out a chimney and the gutters and tore through some shingles. If that had been the only damage, it would have merely taken a blue tarp for me to be back in my home.

Unfortunately for me and the rest of the city, it was broken levees that caused the real destruction. The water rose and it sat there until what was wood collapsed, what was metal rusted, and what was left was covered in mold. My house was on three foot piers, so the five feet of water in my neighborhood translated into two feet of water inside.

Today is five years since landfall. I was lucky and well insured. None of my family or friends died or were injured. With an outpouring of support that still brings tears to my eyes, I was able to complete the restoration of my house by the end of October, 2006.

Even after the city has come so far in her recovery, there are still people who want to know why I ever came back. They are perplexed about the lure of a city that has proven to be vulnerable to the ravages of nature (odd given that plenty of them live in cities that are very near fault lines). They wonder about health and safety issues and the economics of trying to work in such a vulnerable place. They question about what will happen when the next storm or next spill comes.

I don’t have any answers.

I just know this is home.

CA Supreme Court Decision Disappointing

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Marriage Equality, Mary Griggs, Rant

(c) by Mary Griggs

Yesterday, the California Supreme Court announced the 6-1 decision to uphold voter-driven discrimination against gay and lesbian couples. “Prop 8,” was a statewide voter initiative which redefined marriage in California as between a man and a woman and narrowly passed in November 2008 after a highly contentious effort from both sides of the marriage equality issue.
The Executive Director of the National LGBT Bar Association summed up my feelings pretty well when he said: “It is a sad day when the courts, charged with protecting the minority from the tyranny of the majority, uphold a system where fundamental rights are decided by popular vote.”

Banning same-sex couples from marriage is unfair. Same-sex couples have the same hopes, dreams and concerns for their families as everyone else. We should be allowed the dignity, recognition, and responsibility that come with marriage, just like everyone else.

In our society, marriage is not simply a religious institution. The Government Accounting Office lists 1,138 legal rights that are conferred upon heterosexual married couples. By not being allowed to get married, lesbians and gays are denied not just the legal and economic benefits but all the emotional and social benefits and responsibilities of marriage as well.

As much as their decision disappoints us, we are relieved the California Court protected the 16,000 couples who married before November 5. The presence of thousands of married same-sex couples across California will show those who don’t yet know us that marriage strengthens families and communities and threatens no one.

Today’s decision in California does not reflect the progress being made across this country for equal rights. The tide is turning. There are now six states which embrace marriage equality for same-sex couples, and several more are on the brink.

We must not give up.

We must not back down.

Signed By Bella Books

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Mary Griggs, Publishing

(c) by Mary Griggs

I’ve signed a contract with Bella Books to publish my first novel. It is called Unbroken Circle and is the story of a woman who returns to the small town in Alabama where she was born and discovers what home really means.

Once I get through the editing process and onto the publishing schedule, my book should be available next year in time for the Golden Crown Literary Conference June 9-12, 2011 in Orlando, Florida.

Synopsis:
A woman returns to the small town in Alabama where she was born after serving time in prison for a crime she does not remember committing. Walking into the restaurant once owned by her mother, she finds the chef/owner to be the older sister of her best friend from high school. While the two of them grow closer, questions about Janet’s criminal record lead to the revelation that she was wrongly convicted. With Sallie Lee’s support, Janet is able to reach out for the professional help she knows she needs to find healing and happiness where she is.