Got up at seven this morning to watch the hurricane coverage. My heart aches at the video clips of children huddled in stadium seats at the Superdome. The pillows they clutch seem like scant protection against the monster storm they know is coming. At least when our kids cry out in the night, the monster isn't real.

A few minutes ago, they said the white flashing on the roof of the Superdome is shredded. Some sections of the roof itself have peeled away. It's impossible to tell the extent of the structural damage right now and there's no camera coverage from inside the building, but I'm praying the people inside will be comforted and kept safe -- not just them, but everyone in the path of Katrina.

Most people in the storm - aside from a few die-hards who stayed on purpose so they could say they rode out the hurricane - are there either because they have no choice, or because they're part of a force of often unsung heroes. Many many service people are risking their lives to keep others safe and healthy. Not only policeman, fireman, doctors, nurses, etc. but people like my niece's boyfriend, Tim, who's in charge of a massive effort to provide food for the emergency workers, Entergy personnel, and students who had nowhere else to go at the local coastal university. He couldn't evacuate. Too many people who need him. I'm praying a special blessing for these people who sacrifice their safety to serve others.

Some days even those of us hundreds of miles inland feel like the eye of the storm is bearing down on us and there's no way out. All we can do is clutch our pillow and pray. May God protect you from the monsters in your life.