She still had to wait 7 days in quarantine, but a Malaysian nurse who worked as a COVID-19 frontliner in Singapore was in tears after getting reunited with her family whom she had not seen in two long years.
COVID Frontliner Finally Goes Home
Being away from your family is difficult enough, but imagine being a frontliner during the COVID-19 pandemic and being away from them for years. It’s so difficult, especially because frontliners are more susceptible to contracting the scary disease!
Photo credit: Tracy Jantom
Malaysian frontliner Tracy Jantom, 26, has been working in Singapore as a nurse. While it was far away from her home, there was always a chance for her to go home for a vacation in the past.
She explained that she had first moved to Singapore to pursue her Bachelor’s Degree in Nursing part-time while also working full time in a local hospital.
But when the pandemic hit, she was among those who got ‘trapped’ and were unable to go home. Though she was still able to continue doing her job, she was always scared about what might happen to her as a COVID-19 frontliner. She longed for her family.
It would take her two years before she could finally go back home.
She chronicled her journey in a video that quickly went viral, with many supportive netizens praising her sacrifice and celebrating her homecoming.
“Just cannot believe I am finally going back home after everything I’ve been through,” Tracy said.
“Handling the pandemic as a frontliner was not easy.”
As her plane finally arrived in Malaysia, this brave young woman just couldn’t help but cry. She still had to take another plane to her hometown in Miri, Sarawak, then stay in quarantine for 7 days – but those are nothing compared to the happiness she felt in finally getting reunited with her family.
She was able to briefly meet them at the airport but only from a distance and she couldn’t hug them.
So, what will she do after quarantine?
“I would like to hug my mother first,” she said.
“After that I will eat all the Sarawakian delicacies that I’ve been craving for two years.”
@trcyjntm you made it, tracy ❤️
Sarawakian Delicacies
The following are some of the top Sarawakian delicacies (from Sarawak, Malaysia):
- Ayam Pansuh or Manuk Pansuh (a chicken dish cooked in bamboo)
- Midin (Sarawakian wild fern dish)
- Umai (salad with raw fish)
- Ka Chang Ma Chicken (motherwort herb chicken)
- Nuba Laya (special mashed rice wrapped in leaves)