Ended up like this.
So. Here’s a little story. About 2020, and how something that starts so well, can muddle around so poorly and still end with something beautiful.
The past few years I’ve made a daily quilt. Sometimes with hard data, sometimes with others input. This year I picked a block I love called Three Little Birds, inspired by the Bob Marley song. And what better vibe to sew into something. The only requirement was each block had to relate somehow to the block that preceded it. It was a good chance for me to cut into my stash of loved fabrics that I was reluctant to use.
Then well , March and all this… I made masks, all day and night, and managed to get to the dailies, weekly or so.
In July, I had a really bad work breakup. Like really bad. Rattled me really hard, a lot of awful things were said to me. Made me consider and reconsider who am I am and how I am actually perceived. And it got really hard to sew these blocks. Cause I didn’t feel like “every little thing, is gonna be all right”.
But. Nevertheless, she persisted. With an underlying nagging doubt, and the awful things repeating in my head… Also 366 6 inch quilts blocks takes up a lot of space. Both in real life and in weight of expectations.
So here are the 7 daily quilts from 2020. The title is Three Little Birds - a Triptych in 5 parts.
Each one is in date order and subtitled.
2020 366days overview
1/5-Jan1-Mar17 general bad attitude
2/5-Mar18-May26 refusal to ask questions
3/5-May27-Aug6 destruction of morale
4/5-Aug7-Oct15 overwhelming negativity
5/5-Oct16-Dec31*inability to be a team player *
6/5-bonus made from scrap corners lack of motivation
Two have gone to live with people associated with the bad work break up, one to a coworker I loved working with, who is one of the BEST people, and another to a regular who messaged to see if things were OK.
And as I finished them up. And the weight was lifting, I realised I am a little bit of some of those things but I’m a whole lot better than that too. It is true. Every little thing is gonna be all right.
When I say the slothcave is my therapy, I’m not kidding. Sorry for all the words.
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AIMR
(Linda -2023 is a use the good stuff year! :us:)
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Quilting therapy and healing…the bonus looks to be quite cathartic…
A bad work break up really takes its toll but it is also a great time for self-reflection and re-arranging one’s self…I’ve had three really bad ones and each time, I came out of it a better person, partly because I was true to myself and didn’t let others gaslight me into thinking it was all my fault…I learned some hard lessons about people and how loyalty can quickly turn into a knife to the back…
Hope you are on the path to better things…just glad you found a constructive way to deal during an already destructive-prone year…it was a pile on year for you and yet, here you are…thanks for sharing your wonderful quilts as well as your story of resilience and persistance.
The subtitles are all things the owner said directly to me. I know he just wanted a hot 19 year old. And opted to (cough cough, illegally,)not bring back the staff he laid off due to covid.
His loss.
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AIMR
(Linda -2023 is a use the good stuff year! :us:)
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Then you are better off not to be in that toxic environment. A lot of companies are finding ways not to hire back experienced and more highly compensated employees…they do it exactly like that so as not to have to pay unemployment.
Yay for coming through things, quilts in tow! I particularly like the directional randomness in the “inability to be a team player” quilt-- it feels a lot like my brain at times…
Oh honey, these are wonderful. Each one is a masterful expression of emotion and contemplation, thank you for all the words!
I am completely in love with the last one. I must have come back to this topic on my phone about 10 times, enlarging the screen to see detail until it was a fuzzy blur. Now on a proper computer I’m looking again and just WOW. It is amazing. I’m flabbergasted at all that marvelous fabric. I am wild for this quilt. I hope whoever it went to knows it’s about the best thing ever!
People with a lack of motivation and general bad attitude don’t quilt like this! Let alone self reflect and bounce back. Stunning work, my friend, on many levels.
Well, you obviously don’t have a lack of motivation. The same thing happened to my sister, but at least her employer didn’t say rude things to her like that. He just let her go, then hired new staff at half the price. It was horrible. But I love how your documented your journey and the end result was so bright and cheerful. I wish you all the luck in the World. Stay true to yourself, and don’t let anyone else’s issues become yours. Congrats on some AMAZING quilts!
These are amazing. I’m so happy that you got out of that toxic environment. You’ll find a place that appreciates you. I actually got in trouble at my last job for saying, “Happy Friday” on a conference call because, according to my horrible old boss, it meant that I was being negative and hated work. I’ve finally found a much better place to work where I’m treated much better. It’ll happen for you. Better days are ahead.
Sorry for all the words.
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