During hurricane Katrina, many victims were displaced and anxious as to \"What to do next?\" My family and I had evacuated three days prior to landfall of Katrina, and we had planned to spend a week\'s time in Toledo, Ohio. In mind we had pictured a small vacation before the start of my senior year in high school, in reality it was a beginning of a tragic story.\r\n The first day of our \"vacation\" we spent gazing at the television in hopes in catching a glimpse of our small convenient store in the seventh ward of New Orleans. The news coverage was on every channel, radio station, and newspaper. I had a realization that in time everything that I was use to was about to change. The little memories of simply going shopping with my friends, going to football games, and even my school campus had flashed through my mind. I felt as if everything that was five minutes away was gone forever. My friends I had grown up with were scattered across the nation; my high school was closed down and sat in three feet of water, my home was ripped of its fullness and comfort. I had hit my \"Ground Zero.\"\r\n Emotionally, I was drained and exhausted. I was forced to restart a social life at a new high school with an atmosphere so unwelcoming and different. The students were all in their own cliques, as where at John Ehret, we were all diverse and there wasn\'t a set place for certain people. The number of students at the entire high school was the size of my senior class alone. These kids all knew each other from elementary school. I on the other hand was the odd ball; I was the victim of Katrina. I went from bring Class Secretary to the \"Katrina Girl.\" The thought of making new friends with these students didn\'t seem very appealing to me. Graduation went from my ultimate event to just another detail I was ready to get over with. What is the importance of graduation if I had no friends to celebrate it with, or friends who knew how hard I had worked to get this far and this high? What meaning would it have to graduate with National Honors Society if this wasn\'t the chapter I shared community hours with? It felt like their lives were progressing and mine had come to a complete stop.\r\n Even though Katrina took a toll on my life, it made me stronger. I had come to realize how much I love New Orleans. My appreciation for things grew stronger, and I learned not to take things for granted. Like the saying goes, \"Live today like it\'s your last.\" Now I\'m back, and I feel great. I\'ve never been gladder to say, \"New Orleans, proud to call it home.\"\r\n