'A moving moment.' Grandma prescribed a post-vaccine hug
For Laura Shaw Frank, seeing her mother hug her daughter for the first time since the onset of the pandemic was a light at the end of the tunnel
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.For Laura Shaw Frank, seeing her mother hug her daughter for the first time since the onset of the pandemic was a light at the end of the tunnel.
“It just felt like all this love was pouring out and also that there was like this feeling of hope, like maybe there’s a future, maybe we’re going to get out of this,” Frank said Tuesday about her mother and daughter embracing for the first time after becoming vaccinated.
Evelyn Shaw, who lives about a mile from Frank’s home in the Bronx and lives alone, spent a lot of time with her four grandchildren before the pandemic. She moved there four years ago to be closer to them. But when it hit, the family made the difficult decision to stay as distant as possible in order to keep her safe.
It was a note from the family doctor that cleared Shaw to hug her 23-year-old granddaughter Ateret once they had been fully vaccinated.
“We were all just bawling,” Frank told The Associated Press. “She hadn’t been touched in a year. It was such a moving moment.”
Frank said coming together as a family during religious holidays is the next challenge. After that, the family dreams of Broadway — but only if her mother will be safe.
“We feel very comfortable, given the guidance that we’ve gotten, that we can have our Seder together in a week and a half, but I do really understand my mom…I really do get it. She’s at much higher risk than we are, and it takes a while,” Frank said. “It takes a while to sort of let go of that fear and return to some sense of normalcy.”
___
AP journalist Joshua Housing contributed to this report from Phoenix Arizona