Ms Fatima Abbadi is an enthusiastic user and follower of the TRC. She is teaching Middle Eastern embroidery to Arab women in Capelle a/d IJssel, near Rotterdam (see the TRC blog). She wrote on 12 April 2020:

On the 16th of March the Dutch government announced a total lockdown of all public activities, schools and social gatherings due to the Coronavirus outbreak. People were confined in their homes with no possibility of going out, except for essential necessities in order to keep people safe and away from any possible contagion.

This strange feeling of isolation and exclusion from the surrounding environment made me focus more on my various artistic projects, such as embroidery and photography and on how I could help the surrounding communities.

During this time I was constantly in touch with all the ladies that took part in my embroidery workshop. I was concerned about the state of their health due to this forced state of isolation in a land that does not belong to them. Most of their stories they told during our phone calls were about exile, stress, anxiety of the unknown and the uncertainty of tomorrow. The fear of death was a constant thought that never left them and this is due to the war traumas they have endured. This endless struggling situation made them emotionally and mentally very fragile and they needed help or assistance more than ever.

Embroidery was one of the main subjects of our conversations and I realized that whenever we talked about it they were able to put aside these worries and focus on a different topic.

Hence, my experiment was to keep them as busy as possible with embroidery. The social media and whatsapp turned out to be essential in keeping us in touch. I started giving them weekly tasks, often very difficult ones, in order to keep them mentally focused.

They had to copy patterns from small pictures and use their creativity and ability in counting stitches in order to obtain a perfect reproduction of the pattern on the fabric. All these activities were new to them and were made possible by the many daily video calls during which I would check on the progress of their work or give advice on how to follow up with the pattern.

A month has gone by since the beginning of the lockdown and I would like to share a few samples and messages from seven of these amazing ladies. ......

W01: Frankly, embroidery distracts me from thinking a lot. Especially in moments when I feel very distressed by something, I simply start embroidering and it is magically beautiful how you end up creating something artistic and forget completely the reason for being distressed.

W02: I‘d really like to say that embroidery helped to change a lot of things in my life. When I sit and hold the thread and cloth in my hands it eases me psychologically and in some way, it takes me far away from this noisy and crowded world. It empties my mind and excludes me from all the surroundings and with my thoughts I fly away back to my land, my house and the Jasmine flowers. I find myself sitting underneath the pergola, listening to Fairuz and sipping my cup of coffee ...this is my true world.

W03: Tatreez (Arabic for embroidery) for me is associated with the feeling of belonging somewhere far away I call home, without being able to find the way back. But the word also means that when I hold a piece of cloth in one hand and with the other I stitch a cross beside a cross and mix some threads of different colours, then the road back home is clear.

W04: I found enormous joy in the process of embroidering, starting from choosing the patterns and the colourful threads to create beautiful pieces that reflect my identity in a very unique artistic way. For me it's like meditation and creating a bond with myself, my culture and the women in my group. Especially in these times, it helped us make the best of our time while staying at home; we are continuously learning and creating patterns, communicating by sharing our work and achievements and supporting and inspiring each other.

W05: My experience with embroidery, especially in these circumstances of quarantine, came in an appropriate time. After I finish my daily home duties, embroidery starts. It helps to absorb all my negative energy and bad thoughts. I love to spend my time watching TV or listening to songs and speaking on the phone about embroidery, I literally replaced all my emptiness and void moments with embroidery and when I finish a pattern, I get more excited to go even further and see the final result.

W06: Embroidery has many benefits with the coming of the Coronavirus, “A blessing in disguise.” A life lesson and experience and especially with the art of embroidery, I learned that patience is needed and that to achieve a pattern we need time, even if it’s on a small piece of cloth. Embroidery made me get rid of stress and the pressure we experience in this moment of quarantine.

W07: After performing my daily home and religious duties, I start embroidering. For me embroidery is like a form of rosary recitation, with every stitch I recite a prayer of thanks to the Lord for the gift of health and the blessing of love that I receive daily.

What I learnt from this experience is that embroidery is indeed a healing therapy for these women. It has kept their minds focused on a task, it has helped them to channel their negative energy into something positive, they have cultivated patience and at the same time they have been able to be creative. All elements that have allowed them to take a step back from everything that surrounds them and make time for themselves.