"I was in New Orleans a couple of weeks before Katrina hit. I couldn't believe the images on all of the news networks after the hurricane. I sat there at home, full of disbelief and grief. I thought to myself, I was just there, it can't be like that. All of the landmarks and people in this spectacular, historic, and culturally rich American treasure of a city were forever changed. I had brought back some souvenirs from my trip, Spanish moss and Mardi Gras beads, for my cousin's wife who was raised in New Orleans. I stopped by to give her the gifts and talk about my travels. She had a personal story for every landmark that I mentioned. She explained the history of the special places from a local's perspective. As we spoke that evening, I could never have imagined that only weeks later she would be heading back to that same city, back to St. Bernard Parish to find and identify her father's remains. Katrina had sent him home. I wished that I could have turned back time."