What Hurricane Dorian Should Have Taught Us

We must free ourselves of the hope that the sea will ever rest. We must learn to sail in high winds.

Aristotle Onassis

Certainly it goes without saying that Hurricane Dorian was a cultural-defining moment in The Bahamas. It was one that brought about massive devastation and loss. However, in the same token, it fertilized the soils of the country for hope to blossom.

Over the past few weeks, I’ve been mentally digesting. Mulling over ideas and my thoughts on the entire hurricane. The destruction it brought forth. Many of the lives it changed. The kindness it evoked.

Consequently, I realized that although we as a nation still feel the acute pain this hurricane has caused, there are still some valuable lessons we can take from it.

And that is going to be the focus of today’s post. Focusing on the knowledge and insights we should’ve gained from this experience. Fair warning, most of the following ideas aren’t matter of fact. Rather, just my personal opinions. But before we get into it…

(If you’re new to Introverted-Insight, it’s really awesome to have you here. And if you’re a returning reader, welcome back! I’m always grateful to have you in my Little Space To Be Creative.)

(By all means, enjoy today’s post and feel free to browse the site for more great content, including short-stories and musical commentary. After reading today’s post, feel free to scroll to the bottom of your screen and Subscribe via email to become an official Insighter! I’d be my pleasure to have you aboard.)

That said, let’s do this.

1. Our Young People Are Leaders

Now, I can’t speak for everybody. But between WhatsApp, Facebook, IG, and the Twitter-verse, I have seen countless young people using whatever platform they have to help tremendously during this crisis. From ensuring the correct emergency contact information was distributed, to sending out missing family reports, to informing the public of news as it was in the making. You name it, they did it.

There was even a young, female, Bahamian meteorologist who lectured everyone on what conditions made it possible for the hurricane to remain stationary over Freeport. And she did all on social media, via a Twitter thread!

And this type of informed brilliance and competence continued disseminating across the various social media. Even on the heels of the rescue and evacuation phase, youth across The Bahamas have been putting their all into volunteerism and raising funds through a number of causes.

The level of action being taken during this time made me proud to be a young person in this country. Also encouraging me to do everything possible within my capacity to help out. It is my hope that we can channel the urgency of our actions from this situation into everyday crises as well.

Above all, I hope that this level of proactivity will inspire other youth to step-up to the playing field and become the custodians of this country’s future. Because when you really look at it, we youth are not defined by the words of generations that came before us. We’re not a bunch of lazy, non-progressive, technology-crazed s-o-b’s. We’re a league of forward-thinking, technically-inclined, radicalists who should never be underestimated.

2. Political Preferences Should Be Left Out of National Crises

Admittedly, I was rather disgusted by all the political shenanigans going on during the uproar of the hurricane.

First of all, such a crisis should not be exploited by any party for political clout. For heaven’s sake, people have died at the expense of this hurricane; show some damn humanity you illusionists of depth and well-meaning. And shame on people on social media who added gas to the burning heap of propaganda.

Moreover, let’s be reminded that there’s some black, gold, and aquamarine that’s stained on our insides and can never be painted over by any shade of red, yellow, or green. Help is what is needed and it shouldn’t matter from whom.

FNM, PLP, DNA, UBP, ZNS, it doesn’t matter. Put your petty political differences aside and help out the people. Because no matter where you fall on the color spectrum, we are all Bahamian.

AND THAT’S ON PERIOD! (as the young people say.)

3. It’s Okay to Take Breaks From Social Media

I tend to take my reprieve from social media at least twice out of the week. In fact, the promotion of my blog is probably the only reason I’d be on social media every day out of the week. Sure, there’s the memes (arguably the best part of social media), but with all the non-stop information flooding your screens, it can become overwhelming at times.

Case in point, during the storm. There was an abundance of images and videos capturing the good, the bad, and the unmentionable.

Starting with the good, you see many persons volunteering their time, donations being made, supplies being delivered, and family members reunited. These things are pleasant to the eyes and posit good vibes and a sense of relief.

On the other hand, there was a cesspool of graphic images and videos of damage to properties and even dead bodies (which is never okay to post). This kind of intake over a prolonged period of time can leave you feeling drained.

Furthermore, it can potentially evoke powerful emotions such as: anger, depression, hopelessness, or even anxiety. Hell, it can even trigger a psychotic episode. So remember to gauge your social media usage normally.

Your mental health is just as important as your physical well-being. So by all means, take the time you need to disconnect and regroup. You can read my post ‘The Social Media Stronghold‘ for more on the negative effects of extensive social media usage.

4. Be Thankful Even If Your Current Situation Isn’t Ideal

Before completely offing social media post-hurricane Dorian, I couldn’t help but notice a slew of complaints. Yes people, we all go through load-shedding here in Nassau, I get it. I did a whole post about it here.

Similarly, I get that it is possible to be sympathetic and still complain. But some people took it to the extreme. Yes, your power was off for a number of hours, but at least there’s a set-time for it to come back on.

People lost their homes completely, some their lives. Be thankful that you still have life, health, and access to these necessities because they were stripped away from thousands indefinitely in a matter of seconds.

My house underwent load shedding and flooding. But I was practically unfazed by it all because of the news of persons losing their lives to this storm. It made feel a sense of numbness as well as a surge of gratefulness.

Because had Nassau felt the full brunt of the hurricane like Grand Bahama or Abaco, we would’ve officially been dubbed ‘The Lost City of Atlantis’. Hence, be mindful and appreciative of all you have even though it doesn’t fit with your current ideal of perfection or it provides mild inconveniences.

5. We Actually Have The Ability To Unite & Make A Real Difference

Right now, the level of giving, unifying, and social humanitarianism is astounding in The Bahamas. Personally, I can’t think of a time when Bahamians galvanized to this magnitude, especially young people.

This just goes to show that, in us lies the innate ability to put aside differences and narrow-minded pettiness and get things done. In our own special way, we all can collectively work toward a common goal.

And it’s this type of synergy we need. We need it developing in our homes, running rampant through our streets, manifesting in our schools, and promenading our House of Assembly.

All in all, it goes to show that we Bahamians have the propensity to positively reconstruct this archipelagic nation. So much to the point that it actually can be “Better In The Bahamas”.

Final Thoughts

Well Insighters, we’ve come to the end of another post. And like I said in the beginning, this post is more so a collage of my thoughts from the hurricane. Undoubtedly, we’ve felt its impact on various levels. But in all things, there’s a modicum of good, a lesson or several to be learned.

As always, take care of yourselves. Put your health and needs first. And continue to be your best, unapologetic self. Love you guys!

If you’d like to donate/volunteer to The Bahamas toward the relief efforts of Hurricane Dorian for the islands of Grand Bahama and Abaco please see the following credible organizations, charities, and causes listed below:

Lend a Hand Bahamas: https://www.lendahandbahamas.org/bahamas-hurricane-relief

HeadKnowles: https://www.gofundme.com/f/headknowles-emergency-funds

Grand Bahama Children’s Hospital Rebuilding Fund: https://www.gofundme.com/f/gjwb7c-hurricane-dorian-gbch-rebuilding-fund

More here: https://www.bahamas.com/relief

More causes here as well: https://m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=10103549206859798&id=199708021

Any help given to my country no matter the size will be greatly appreciated, as you are helping to better the lives of those affected by great tragedy.

Did you enjoy today’s lifestyle post?  Let me know your thoughts in the comment section below.

If you liked this post, share it with others and click the links below to follow I-I on social media:

Instagram: @introverted_insight 

Twitter: @Introverted242 

Facebook: Introverted-Insight

If you want to become an official ‘Insighter’, subscribe to the blog at the very bottom of the page and you’ll never miss a new post! Until then…

Thank you so much for reading and I’ll see you next time on Introverted-Insight!

Can’t get enough of #LifestyleWednesdays? Click here for more lifestyle-related content!