When I see images of St. Vincent covered in ash I think about the breadth of the Caribbean's experience with natural disasters. To this day, our civilizations and identities are being shaped by cycles of devastation and renewal.

It is a remarkable coincidence that the region where they exiled our ancestors is the destination for hurricanes that form in the Atlantic. When an island experiences a direct hit from a raging cyclone international news media rush to report on the scale of the devastation.

They show us large trees uprooted from stable ground. The thrashed remains of houses that violent breezes beat. Roadways buried beneath feet high pools of water. As we sit in our homes by candlelight at night, we join the spectators and wonder if our scarred islands will recover.

If you are one of the people who had to leave your home in the red and orange zones during the last week, you will find little comfort in stories about our resilience. I get it. Osh. I wish for you to get all of the urgent support that you need.

In time, the wind will scatter the plumes of ash across the ocean and rain will wash every surface clean. While image-makers remind us that the Caribbean is a precarious place, we must not forget that we evolved over many centuries in this environment—and we are (the) survivors.