Stay The F**k Home

Stitched by: KG

Pattern designed by: Subversive Cross Stitch

I saw the pattern for this being shared on the Facebook page of one of the cross stitch groups that I belong to just days into discussions of social distancing, and what we might all be required to do in the near future. I was really torn about the message that people needed to stay at home in order to stop the spread of the virus. On the one hand, I didn’t want to believe that this was what we needed to do, but on the other, part of me felt that perhaps we had to do this. Many of the people I spoke to at the time felt similarly. I guess the use of the f bomb in this piece spoke to me about the anger that I felt at having to do something I didn’t want to do, but also of the urgency of the situation, the importance of the message, the unbelievable nature of what was unfolding. As I made this piece things rapidly changed. Along with my colleagues, I began to work from home, and to go out less and less. By the time I finished it – which was only a matter of a couple of weeks – I was barely leaving the house except for essentials like food, and beach walks.