Katrina.

It's hard to fathom the suffering in New Orleans. I spent yesterday evening watching the TV news, seeing weary, confused people wading through water, trying to figure out where to go, how to begin to deal with their problems. One woman who walked down the Interstate held a feverish five-day-old baby. I heard someone say that hundreds of people were still on rooftops waiting to be rescued. An old man cried when a reporter asked him if he had to swim to save himself.

What of all the people without water? What about the sick and the elderly and trapped somewhere? What about those who are injured and inside buildings where they cannot signal for help? Will we not eventually discover many dead bodies of men and women — of children — who wondered for days if anyone would ever get around to looking inside their place?

It's hard to think about the city of New Orleans gone. One expert opined that only a small central core of it will be rebuilt.

I heard the word "refugees" over and over again. It's hard to believe this is happening in our country. How can there be so many people suffering and in need of help, waiting for days for the most basic aid — in America?

Here's the link to make a donation to the American Red Cross.