We spoke withe the Shirley family on Instagram Live while our show was on a hiatus from taping due to the coronavirus pandemic. Take a look:
We caught up with the Shirley’s to see how they are doing now.
“We are thankful that we all remain healthy and in good spirits. Although the lockdown has been lifted people are being asked to remain indoors as much as possible and only go out if absolutely necessary,” Bevan Shirley said.
Shirley told us that the lockdown is specifically to allow vehicular traffic in and out of the city. It also means that some essential businesses are resuming in the city of Wuhan.
He said the ban, according to him, also means:
- 1.) This means that residents who were locked out of the city can now come in and persons locked in can now leave.
- 2.) We are now able to receive deliveries of non-essential items bought online.
- 3.) We are now seeing a few vehicles on the road where we live and people can now be seen walking around within the boundaries of our apartment complex.
- 4.) Persons with a green health code (health clearance) are able to go outside of their communities and access business services (We have not yet received our green health code).
He told us despite all of that they are happy the lockdown has been lifted and they are happy that the city is getting back to normal slowly in a very structured way.
They are, however, exercising caution… “There is still a chance that people can catch COVID-19 because there are persons in the general population that have the virus but show no symptoms. Some such persons have been identified after nucleic acid tests related to the issuing of the green health clearance certificate. The general population I think is cautious and so are we,” Shirley said.
The Shirley’s are continuing to take the same precautions they did during the lockdown like, limiting outdoor activities, social distancing, wearing masks, etc.
The family learned a lot during their lockdown and documented it all in their book COVID-19 7:03: A Jamaican family’s story of hope while living in Wuhan, China during the pandemic.
Bevan Shirley ended with, “As humans we are all connected; we really don’t need so much ‘stuff,’ people are more important than possessions; your words are powerful; you can choose to make the most of your situation. We chose faith over fear. Family first; The world is fragile; We’re all just people; you can make a difference in this world.”
The Shirley’s are so inspirational during such dark times. Stay updated with their life on their Instagram.