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Depending on Community, Not Government
Recent realities have brought this home
There has been flooding in parts of the United States. I used to live near some of those areas, so I was calling friends to make sure they were OK. One of my neighbors was also affected.
He and his family moved here when he was 9, 20 years ago. In many ways, we are now family.
And so today I saw his emotional fragility, his vulnerability. He was open and honest with me because he needed a safe space and I could provide that for him.
He had friends and family in Tennessee. I had friends in North Carolina. We both knew people in Florida.
“FEMA’s not doing a g*d d*mned thing,” he said.
“No, they don’t seem to be,” I said.
“I mean, Trump is a douche, but at least I’ve seen him go down there,” my friend said. “And Elon Musk is trying to connect through Starlink. And my friend and I have donated through Samaritan’s Purse.”
“I did too,” I said. “I remember they are located in Boone, so they are right there. And I was reading that Dolly Parton and some of the other local people have been donating water and other supplies.”
My friend is a Muslim, and a devout one, but he doesn’t care how help gets to people. He wants…
