I hear the garage open and I run downstairs to give my dad a hug after he comes home from work like I have done for as long as I can remember. This day, however, he reached out his arms but told me not to touch him.

This is my new normal. 

Healthcare workers, including my parents, care for the sick at the risk of their own wellbeing and face uncertainty when returning home and potentially putting their families at risk. 

In my two physician household, we never expected how drastically our lives would change as a result of the C-19 virus.

At the beginning, everything was a blur. My life, my habits, my comforts were changed in an instant. 

Then no hugging. Three different bedrooms. Wipe surfaces. Wipe door knobs. Shower immediately after their hospital shifts. 

Everyday my parents suit: ready for war.

Academy parent Amy Whitson, wife of Dr. Bryan Whitson, a cardiothoracic surgeon at The OSU Wexner Medical Center, says,\ “Every day there are very sick patients who need an operation, and even though the surgery goes well, we never know whether they will recover from COVID-19.  And every day we wash, scrub, clean, and quarantine apart from one another, never knowing how long this will last or how it will affect our children.”

After a couple months, I’ve almost forgotten that I didn’t live like this just a little while ago. Yet a new feeling of gratefulness has emerged: the pride I have for my parents, who I can’t wait to a hug.