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<\/p>\nThe world we live in. The world we don\u2019t.<\/p>\n
Recently while working Disaster Relief in Marshalltown, Iowa, we stayed\u00a0a few miles out of town at \u201cThe Ranch\u201d. Red barns, a bunkhouse, horses in the pasture and goats in the barn were all part of a\u00a0beautiful, peaceful, quiet, idyllic setting.\u00a0 I went into town and shopped at clean, attractive, crowded stores. That\u2019s the world in which I lived.<\/p>\n
Less than five miles away, an F3 tornado had cut a 1\/2 mile wide path for 4 miles in downtown Marshalltown.\u00a0 This was an industrial part of town, dominated by affordable housing and rentals.\u00a0 Trees were down, roofs destroyed and houses were made uninhabitable. \u00a0People were displaced. Several of the plants and factories that were the lifeblood of the community were destroyed, resulting in much uncertainty about the future.\u00a0 People wondered, \u201cWill I be able to rebuild?\u00a0What about my job?\u201d\u00a0Anxiety abounded. That\u2019s the world\u00a0in which they\u00a0lived.<\/p>\n
Our chainsaw volunteers went out into the community with boom lifts and skidders to cut trees off houses, clean up debris, and place blue tarps on roofs.\u00a0They were among the destruction but it was not their community.<\/p>\n
Several displaced families shared\u00a0\u201cThe Ranch\u201d with the volunteers. One lady and her daughter stayed in one room along with several cats, a couple of pet white rats and a long-haired guinea pig. \u00a0Crowded in another room was a family of 5 with two\u00a0teenagers and an elementary aged boy. The teenage boys\u2019 father was deployed to Afghanistan. The boys\u2019 stepfather, a one-hundred percent disabled vet, was also in the room.\u00a0 Their home was moved off its foundation,\u00a0the windows were blown out and\u00a0the roof leaked. So far they haven\u2019t been able to \u201cBlue Tarp\u201d\u00a0it.\u00a0 The landlord had not filled out paperwork for\u00a0Federal-aid or Insurance.\u00a0This was quite a contrast to\u00a0my world and probably a contrast to yours.\u00a0I slept at night in a warm bed\u00a0after eating way more than I should. I will sleep in safety not worried\u00a0about my\u00a0future,\u00a0not worried about what I will eat and drink tomorrow.\u00a0In\u00a0my world, I simply take for granted all those things.\u00a0I don\u2019t even check to make sure my Social Security and retirement income have been deposited. My life is filled with certainty.<\/p>\n
Were the people that had their houses destroyed and their future put at risk evil people?\u00a0Does that mean that I deserve to live in my world but they are not worthy?\u00a0 I don\u2019t think so.\u00a0What is the difference between me and them?<\/p>\n
It probably means that I am simply fortunate\u2014lucky, whatever you call it that I did not live in the path of this tornado.<\/p>\n
I am here to try to help these people. For a brief time, I entered\u00a0partially\u00a0into\u00a0their world.\u00a0Not fully because I do not get filled with anxiety\u2014downright scared really\u2013 when a thunderstorm comes up as they do.\u00a0My future is not threatened because the factory I work at was blown away. I did not come home to find a huge red X on my house -meaning it had been condemned. I am not looking for a place to stay along with all the others who had been displaced.\u00a0 I won\u2019t be confronted by a lack of available housing for everyone in need.<\/p>\n