I recently wrote about my absence from this blog. I had developed some infections and had heart surgery so all my energy went to getting better.
But some of the energy and time, particularly in the hospital, went to needlework. Having a needle and thread in my hand helped calm me. It occupied my time and mind. It helped make some of that time away from home feel normal.
But I have to admit that with the weakness in my body, my stitches were not as pretty as they had been before I got sick. My embroidery looked like it did when I was 9 years old and just learning to stitch even though I had been stitching for decades.
I'm not one to take out my stitches and redo them when they are not smooth and since the pieces were just for me, I just left them. I was fairly sure that redoing them would not improve them and would just stress and frustrate me, undoing the calm the stitching had brought me in the first place.
The actual stitching was helping me in other ways. As I mentioned it calmed me while I lived, at one point 4 months, in a place that was not mine. It kept my mind occupied as I waited for tests to be done or results to be reported.
It brought some normalcy to my life; I was doing what I would have at home. Even to the point of displaying them in my hospital rooms just like I would have at home. I began to notice as I looked at my hand stitched display, that my stitches were getting tighter, straighter, and smooth looking. My skill was coming back.
I realized it was just like with my physical therapy. The more steps I took or the more I worked with a hand weight, the stronger I became and the better my movement was. I slowly became more confident in my stitching and my stepping.
So if you find yourself in a situation where your skill has weakened from illness or injury, don't give up. Keep stitching. Keep painting, sculpting, making pots, doing wood work, even cooking or baking. Keep up with your creating. It may not be your prettiest work but it will get better and it is helping you heal inside as well.
© 2026. Cheryl E Fillion
