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| Girl flying a kite at the beach. |
It has been four weeks since the shut down began here in
Xiamen, and we are healthy and doing well though we are in the dark as much as
ever. We are still encouraged to stay at home, cannot have visitors into the
compound, and need to wear a mask whenever we go out and will be in close
contact with people. However, businesses are slowly re-opening and some restaurants
and coffee/tea shops are allowing people to sit together (although even then
they prefer people to sit in pairs at most). Schools in our area still have no
projected start date. Here is a recent article that shows
China’s current plan
for re-opening schools. At this rate, I’m guessing our schools at the
earliest will open in mid-April.
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| Sandy flying a kite. |
With the closing of all public meetings, people have been
using alternatives to maintain contact. Our foreign fellowship has been posting weekly messages and songs so that people still can have connection.
Sandy, Emily, and I are a part of various small groups; during this time, some
of the groups have held meetings via video chat, one has begun meeting in
person, and one has been meeting both in person and via video chat. The in-person
meetings have made the restaurant staff nervous because officials check on the
businesses to make sure they are not allowing group meetings. I had gotten
together with four men and we were sitting at a table of four; the manager
insisted on adding a two-person table to our table and seating two people at it
so that everyone was separated by one chair.
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| A view of Xiamen from the countryside |
The people here are still scared, but I would say that the
government crackdown and it's messages has added to the fear. To be honest, there is definitely
a need for more attention to personal hygiene, and the government has had an
impact on that. We still are able to get out and have been getting out at least
once a day. Last Saturday, we had an outing to the beach (a 15 minute drive)
and we regularly go to local parks, which have now been officially reopened
(which is nice because the bathrooms are now open).
Yesterday, a friend of mine took me on a short motorcycle
excursion, and I got to experience the countryside near Xiamen for the first
time. It really isn’t far, but our electric scooters just don’t have the range
to get that far out. It was nice to find a place out in nature that was quiet
and peaceful. Hope you enjoy the photos.
Thank you for remembering us and China. There are still more
questions than answers, but we are blessed and at peace.
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| A view of the reservoir |
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| A view of the reservoir |
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| Abandoned home |
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| Village boy who followed us |
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| Village home |
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Fir trees in the wild
Feels a bit like home |
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| Unusual needles on these trees |
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