When I started dropping the patches back in February the second wave of Covid was howling around the UK. As an embroider in a global pandemic I thought there was very little I could do to make a difference. I was inspired by hearing Betsy Greer in conversation with Craftspace’s Deirdre Figueiredo. It started as an incidental ‘small’ thing to do that I didn’t really expect to go anywhere.
Nearly a 100 patches later and it has easily been a
significant and extremely moving episode in my practice. They have been left in all sorts of places
ranging from hospital entrances, bus and tram stops, parks, canal towpaths,
graveyards and bridges over motorways.
My criteria were
Am I passing that way anyway?
Might someone need comfort in the spot?
The exception on the drops were the two in separate ITU units
where that I managed to get someone else to drop them for me (thanks Nicky and
Liz).
Some patches were gone in minutes (Harborne High St and Kniver
Edge); Others were days (outside my house, bottom of Third Avenue)
I didn’t expect anyone to contact me, but sometimes they did
when they had seen them, often to say ‘Great idea but I don’t need it so I left
it’. I only had one message from a direct
recipient who said it had made her day.
I also did private drops for friends and family; they might
have been bereaved, isolated, or going through a hard time. I did callouts on Instagram to give a patch
away with the one rule that they had to give them away in turn, but because no
good deed should go unpunished, I would always put an extra one in. Some people explained in moving detail who
the patch was for and sent pictures
This was a very different kind of project for me and it was
extremely extremely rewarding. If you
are reading this and are struggling and would appreciate a patch the message me
on Instagram. If I have any left you
will be welcome to one
And of course…..
Stay Safe, Stay Strong
