The Time Weaver

git stash - Freeze and resume your work

The problem: an emergency mid-work

Imagine the situation: you are modifying an important file. Your work is not finished - you don't want to commit half-finished code. And suddenly, a critical bug is reported on another branch that must be fixed immediately.

You can't switch branches with uncommitted changes - Git might refuse or, worse, mix your current changes with the target branch.

git stash - Freeze your work in progress

The git stash command takes all your current changes (staged and unstaged) and sets them aside in a temporary stack. Your working directory becomes clean again, as if you hadn't touched anything.

git stash

It's like pressing "pause": everything is saved, but invisible. You can now switch branches safely.

Stash with a descriptive message

By default, the stash is automatically named after the last commit. But when you accumulate several stashes, it quickly becomes unreadable. Use the -m option to add a clear message:

git stash push -m "Dragon chronicle: chapter 3 in progress"

git stash list - View your stashes

The git stash list command displays all stacked stashes:

git stash list

Result:

stash@{0}: On main: Dragon chronicle: chapter 3 in progress
stash@{1}: WIP on main: abc1234 Add the title

git stash show - Preview a stash

Before restoring a stash, you can see what it contains:

# Summary of modified files
git stash show

# Full diff
git stash show -p

# A specific stash
git stash show stash@{1}

It's like peeking into the drawer without taking anything out.

git stash pop - Restore and remove

The git stash pop command restores the most recent stash and removes it from the stack:

git stash pop

This is the most common operation: you get your work back and the stash disappears.

You can also restore a specific stash:

git stash pop stash@{2}

git stash apply - Restore without removing

Sometimes, you want to restore a stash but keep it in the stack (for example, to apply it on multiple branches):

git stash apply

The difference with pop:

git stash drop and git stash clear - Cleaning up

To delete a specific stash without restoring it:

# Delete the most recent stash
git stash drop

# Delete a specific stash
git stash drop stash@{1}

To delete everything at once:

git stash clear

Stashing specific files

By default, git stash sets aside all changes. But you can target specific files:

git stash push -m "Just the report" report.txt

The other modified files stay in place. This is useful when you only want to set aside part of your work.

The complete workflow: stash in real life

Here is the typical stash usage scenario:

1. You are working on a feature (main or feature branch)
2. Emergency! A critical bug is reported
3. git stash push -m "feature X in progress"    # freeze the work
4. git switch urgent-fix                         # switch branch
5. ... fix the bug, commit ...
6. git switch main                               # come back
7. git stash pop                                 # resume work

It's smooth, fast, and you don't lose anything.

Practical exercise - The Dragon Emergency

Step 1 - Create the repository and the first commit

mkdir time-weaver
cd time-weaver
git init -b main
echo "# Chronicles of the Kingdom" > chronicle.txt
echo "" >> chronicle.txt
echo "Times are calm in the kingdom." >> chronicle.txt
git add chronicle.txt
git commit -m "Create the chronicle registry"

Step 2 - Start working on a chronicle

You begin writing a new chapter:

echo "" >> chronicle.txt
echo "## Chapter 2 - The Harvest" >> chronicle.txt
echo "This year's crops are abundant..." >> chronicle.txt

Verify that you have changes in progress:

git status

You should see chronicle.txt in the modified files. Do not commit - the chapter is not finished.

Step 3 - Emergency! Stash the work

You must set your work aside:

git stash push -m "Chapter 2 writing in progress"

Verify that your directory is clean:

git status
git stash list

Step 4 - Handle the emergency on a new branch

git switch -c dragon-report
echo "# ALERT - Dragon Report" > alert.txt
echo "" >> alert.txt
echo "A dragon has been spotted in the northern mountains." >> alert.txt
echo "Defenses are being mobilized." >> alert.txt
git add alert.txt
git commit -m "Write the dragon alert report"

Step 5 - Return to the main branch

The emergency is handled, back to your work:

git switch main

Step 6 - Retrieve the work in progress

git stash pop

Verify that your changes are back:

git status
cat chronicle.txt

You should find chapter 2 in progress, exactly as you left it.

Step 7 - Finish and commit

echo "The granaries are full, the people are at peace." >> chronicle.txt
git add chronicle.txt
git commit -m "Write chapter 2 of the chronicles"

Step 8 - Check the history

git log --oneline --all --graph

Step 9 - Run the verification

bash verifier.sh

.\verifier.ps1

Command summary