IT is a week and a half since Matthew, the hurricane, played ketchy-shubby with others, causing confusion. Then he went on his way, adding more pain and suffering to Haiti — the little nation which has suffered much. How much suffering can one nation bear?

While discussing the anguish of the 2016 hurricane season, we shouldn’t forget that Haiti got a serious hit with the earthquake of 2010. It was hard to imagine then that anything like another disaster would bring more pain and suffering once again, afflicting a little nation so soon and so terribly.

The communication links between Jamaica and Haiti have been long established. When the problems come the faithful do not give up, which is why appeals are being made by Church and State to facilitate “caring for neighbour”.

An announcement in our media, via

Jamaica Information Service, revealed early in October that the Government, like others in Caricom, announced preparations that Jamaica will assist Haiti with much-needed goods and services when the needs arise due to a national disaster. It was announced that Jamaica has activated the Caricom disaster recovery assistance mechanism for Haiti and The Bahamas, which were impacted by Hurricane Matthew, the same one that came to see us for what reason we still don’t know. Teams of Jamaica Defence Force soldiers are to be dispatched to both countries to assist with damage assessment, among other activities. Co-ordination is to be handled by the Caribbean Disaster Emergency Management Agency.

Over the years we’ve been battered and bruised by disasters and have benefited from the kindness of others. It’s our time now to help others once again. So, let’s get moving, nuh! Let us give with a generous heart. Haiti, more than anywhere else, knows the pain. Since 2010 an account has been opened at National Commercial Bank (21-2387304) to help when disaster strikes. More information is available on the Office of Disaster Preparedness and Emergency Managment website.

This week, I spoke to two Haitian nationals who are located here. One of whom is Myrtha Desulmé (pronounced Desumay, if you can’t do the real Haitian pronunciation), the president of the Haiti-Jamaica Society, which is doing its best to get as much information as possible on what is happening in Haiti.

In a conversation yesterday, she told me what she has learned via Port-au-Prince, the capital of Haiti, where she has family. There are not as many challenges there, as in the rural areas where destruction has been widespread. Particularly of concern is the brutal impact on agricultural lands, where crops have been wiped out, trees destroyed, difficulties in finding clean water, and other survival necessities. Communication systems have felt the full force of the winds, which tore through the areas ripping down utility poles. In 2010, after the earthquake, we were as quick on the way to help in such specific areas. One would hope it is not too long before there is word and some progress made.

Haiti, like other places, has experienced the best and the worse. So too have we. If all of us are to survive we have to learn the meaning of “love of neighbour”. Standing alone doesn’t work. Matthew might not have been seen and heard much here, but he was not idle in destructiveness.

He moved on to The Bahamas. A dear friend who has been residing in there made contact with us to tell of the suffering which has been felt. In her words: “Hurricane Matthew was so traumatic!” She told how a town called Lowe Sound, in the region of North Andros, has been hit very hard. Many homes lost their roofs and have been washed out by the sea. All in all, people here are having it real hard. She pointed out that what has happened is similar to Hurricane Joaquin, which battered The Bahamas in 2005. The bad memories have resurfaced and provide comparison for what is going on in the present.

Another overseas friend was asking also if we have taken note that, in the Carolinas in the US, communities are still battling flood waters from swollen rivers. She raised the question: What would we (Jamaica people) do if Matthew had turned on us and ripped us to shreds? Meanwhile, another one of our family Out There is experiencing another storm on the attack from the hurricane christened Nicole, with its killer winds hitting Bermuda. This particular friend no doubt is asking: What if we had to face a cruel storm, what would we be thinking right now? What would we say having experienced how, after escaping disaster, we cannot bring ourselves to take a positive attitude. We continue whining, seemingly afraid to even say, “Thanks.”

Barbara Gloudon is a journalist, playwright and commentator. Send comments to the Observer or gloudonb@yahoo.com.