There is a second story here that I now realize is also worthwhile to convey, besides the lives of Sinai saints, and that is the one of the Bedouin of the Jebeliya Tribe. Their way of life makes it starkly apparent what we in the West have largely lost. And that is simplicity, day-to-day trust in God's providence, as well as humble acceptance of suffering if that is God's will. They have an incredible amount of love within their family, that extends even towards us outsiders, and a strong sense of community with their extended family and greater tribe. The love the husband, Hussein, has towards his wife, Hoda, and vice-versa is amazing. He is grateful to God for her and feels she is more precious than any money to him. He fully realizes many people, who are far more wealthy than himself, are unhappy in their family life, while he is extremely happy and grateful for what he has. I have an incredible photo of him interacting with his niece who is disabled with cerebral palsy. It shows the intense love and tenderness between them. But I cannot show it publicly. The photos included in this post are also of his beautiful niece, which I do have permission to share.

I truly believe we, Christian as well as non-Christian, have lost something as a result of our crumbling culture and may not even realize it.
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In January 2018, after working several days helping the monks of St. Catherine's Monastery harvest olives, one of the monks who we had become friends with, took us up to the hermitage of Sts. Galacteon and Episteme where St. Paisios of Athos had resided. He then brought us to the hermitage of Father Moses, which overlooked the monastery of St. Catherine's. Father Moses had been helping the Bedouin women living in the vicinity of St. Catherine's Monastery for years to get organized and improve their quality control so that their embroidery could be sold overseas. But he had to retire and the Bedouin women were left without help. By the providence of God, we were able to take over with Father Moses' blessing. We began small, working with a particular group of women he was most concerned about.

In January 2020, as we embarked on a hike out of the village of St. Katherine's towards the cave of St. John Climacus, a Bedouin woman with her young children came out from a little cinder-block house on the very edge of the village to ask us to come visit her for tea. We told her we would do so when we returned from hiking to the cave of St. John Climacus. When we did return, we were invited into her sewing room. We were amazed by the exquisite quality of her work. I also immediately felt a very strong connection with her. We purchased as many items as we could and it was my hope to return again, later in 2020. Unfortunately, Covid made that impossible.

I went to Sinai in February 2021, knowing the monastery and all facilities next to it, would be closed. So I made arrangements to stay in the village of St. Katherine. My original intent was to continue to work with the village of women Father Moses had first directed us to, but unfortunately, the interpreter who had been helping us, no longer was able to be involved. So instead, I walked to Hoda's house, the young mother and skilled seamstress, who I had met the year before by the trailhead leading to St. John Climacus' Cave.

She immediately recognized me as I walked to her house and was overjoyed. She told me that she asked her sister, Ada, three days before what might have happened to me, and Ada said, "Maybe she is coming?" It turns out, I began my long journey there on that very day.

Hoda is now my intermediary with all the Bedouin women Father Moses originally organized. We were able to employ the full 150 women community of embroiderers during our 2021 Spring Embroidery Project. Because they had been suffering so much financial hardship due to Covid, they were extremely grateful for the work. Hoda, in particular, is expecting her third child and did not have the money for prenatal care or the needed C-section (will be her third C-section). They have no insurance, so the unexpected income allowed her to get prenatal care and pay for the C-section.

These two trips were my 4th and 5th to Sinai. In every previous trip, I had stayed close to the monastery and my primary focus of activity involved the services and hiking to various holy places. This year, monastery services were unavailable and most of the hiking was closed by Egypt (though I did manage to make a couple of hikes anyway and will share photos later). So my primary focus of activity was with Hoda's family and her community. It actually was a great blessing. I had many fears and anxieties, still, regarding traveling in Egypt, safety, etc. and all of these were completely dispelled after spending so much time in the village of St. Katherine, walking everywhere on foot, and making the second trip completely alone. I felt safer there than I do here in north Texas.

Hoda's sewing room went from barren to crammed full of embroidered handicrafts as a direct result of our help. Glory be to God!