Earlier this month, Karen Caraballo witnessed firsthand the devastation to Puerto Rico. After Hurricane Maria hit, she booked the first plane ticket she could find back to the island, where she was born and raised.
After spending five days there, she returned to New York with her young nephews, who she’s caring for in Bay Ridge, Brooklyn, while her family members back in Puerto Rico work to rebuild their lives.
Caraballo and her nephews Pedro, 14, and Alejandro, 5, landed back in New York on October 4, after spending more than 10 hours in transit. They were exhausted, but overjoyed to be in New York.
Caraballo said despite her relief over being home, she had mixed feelings about returning so soon. “I’m conflicted, too. And I’m sad, that my mother and my sister and brother are still in Puerto Rico,” she said. “But I think I can help them more from here.”
Less than a week later, Caraballo, her son, and her nephews enjoyed a sunny afternoon at a park in Bay Ridge, near the Belt Parkway. The boys played together on the playground. For the past few days, Caraballo said they’ve been watching movies, playing games, and just having fun.
But Puerto Rico isn’t far from their minds. Alejandro, especially, has been talking about it.
“He says, ‘Titi, in Puerto Rico, no hay agua, no hay luz, no hay nada!'" Caraballo said. "So it’s, ‘Titi, in Puerto Rico there is no water, there is no electricity, there’s nothing!' And he’s been repeating that sentence, since we got to New York.”
Caraballo, a child psychologist, thinks Alejandro is working through the trauma of his experience during Maria. She’s been helping him talk through it. The most important thing for her, she said, is to make sure her nephews feel safe and comfortable as they recover from the experience.
She recently made the tough decision to take the next month off from her practice to care for the boys.
“One, I can’t focus, or concentrate,” she said. “I also want to enjoy this experience, and be more emotionally available as I can for them.”
Caraballo has already purchased tickets for her and her nephews to go back to Puerto Rico the first week of November. The Puerto Rican government is hoping to re-open many of the island’s schools later this month, to get kids back into the classroom.
But many Puerto Ricans are still without running water, or electricity. And Caraballo said she doesn’t want people to forget the island is still suffering.
“FEMA feels that they’re doing the best that they can,” she said. “It’s not enough.”