Hurricane Melissa through the prism of a Jamaican living overseas

They say of the Jamaican people, they are strong, they are resilient and they will rise! But seriously has our strength ever been truly tested?

Jamaica has historically been seen as one of the most beautiful places on earth, a favorite vacation spot for many. The historical sights, the natural floral, fauna and foliage, a country described as the land of wood, water, mountains and rivers, a place known for its natural resources of bauxite, sugar cane sea and sun. Did the carnage and wrought, brought on by Melissa, the largest known hurricane in modern times to hit a Caribbean island, change all that and tested us beyond measure? What of the spirit of our happy go lucky, laid-back, easy-going people? The nation with a mantra of “No Problem, Man”

I would like to take a moment to focus on the term “Resilient” being tossed around and used to describe the nature of our people in the wake of this monster. This monster that ripped off not only roofs of homes but ripped up lives. I wonder what resilience would look like for someone whose home collapsed, got flooded and livelihood uprooted. Yes I understand, that the comments coming out of the mouths of most Jamaicans who spoke on camera, in the immediate wake of the hurricane, was, the humbling “my life was spared so I will be ok” yes that indicates a spirit of resilience and fortitude…but can we now look back, some weeks later and allow folks to bare their truth with how they are grappling with the destruction? The displacement they must feel is haunting for even me, who is observing from a safe distance and in the lap of comfort here in Florida.

Whilst many Jamaicans are no stranger to hard times and many live in what some folks describe as “abject poverty” (I use the term “poverty”, lightly, which I will flesh out in a moment) some do live in the comfort of a first world environment. Melissa’s hit did not only level the land, but it also literally leveled the socio-economic field. Many are without water, electricity and commodities like food are fast becoming scarce as demand increases and the supply chain and power supplies are interrupted. As food supplies dwindled, and power sources remained cut, supermarkets in the hard-hit areas, began demanding cash only purchases and many began rationing some basic food items.

Now let me explain the term poverty, it is a subjective term, its meaning, varies according to personal feelings, opinions and experiences such as culture and societal norm. The day-to-day living conditions deemed “poverty” by those in a first world nation, with access to all modern amenities and resources, may yet be seen by others, as just a humble way of life, for those, particularly in the rural parts of a country. Some may not have had indoor plumbing, running water and a concrete structure for a house, but creatively they were able to survive. They built outdoor latrines, they fetched water from a river or nearby stream, and they slept in a warm bed under a roof. Many are farmers who tiled the soil and reaped what they sowed, they fished and they were not hungry. Now the dictionary definition of “Poverty” described it as the state of lacking financial resources and essentials for a basic standard of living. After the description of the standard of living of most of the folks living in the rural part of the island, I suppose the ideal term to describe their standard of living pre-Melissa, would be one lacking an abundance of resources or they were just financially challenged, not poor.

I now go back to resilience, when the lives of any folk, of any socio-economic background, have been up ended by a natural disaster, be it fire, flood, tornado, earthquake or hurricane, the devastation tends to have rippling and lasting effects. It is no less impactful but is traumatic for anyone who survives any of the afore-mentioned experience and the survivors having to look at the wreckage in the aftermath of any such disaster are almost surely going to find it to be a life altering experience.

Humble kinfolks or folks of well means, all must now process what happened, find a way to deal with the reality of how their lives are changed and how to move forward. The loss is immeasurable, and the value of what is loss cannot be replaced. Memories and for some, death of a loved one.

To rebuild a mansion or to rebuild a humble abode takes strength and resources, and to each survivor, it is a setback or for many, crippling. How resilient we ask, is someone who has to now be forced to sleep in a tent on a wet mattress with their children instead of a dry bed in a warm room, how resilient we ask, is someone who has lost the convenience of running water and electricity when the roof of their house is blown off and all amenities are gone. How resilient we ask is someone whose means of financial resources are wiped out.

Yes, we are a nation of hard working, people with a unique culture of courage through pain described as fortitude, after all, didn’t we all grow up on the Jamaican proverb that says “tek kin teeth kibba heart bun” which means, to smile through our pain? Melissa has, in one full sweep, blown this saying to smithereens. This devastation is more than a heart burn it is no laughing matter; it is more than we all can imagine and as our family and friends go through this pain, I encourage them to bawl and holla and to not suffer in silence. Let us debunk the notion that crying is a sign of weakness.

The leaders of my island home are going to have to answer some hard questions of how to move forward and those holding the levers of power are faced with a daunting task to appropriate help across the board, to build back a Jamaica that we all can be proud of. Whilst the government figures out the effects of this unprecedented disaster and get about the business of rebuilding our nation, we here in the diaspora, as we watch, some of us in silent grief, let us try to offer more than thoughts and prayers, let us listen to the cries, be empathetic and let us offer help with the aim to restore the dignity of our people, then and only then can we measure, how resilient our people are.