Page 19 - Neglected Arabia Vol I (1)

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NEGLECTED ARABIA 9
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goats and cows, milk, carry water from the wells, grind their wheat,
pound their coffee and rice, wash and cook. They were very friendly and
enjoyed having us call on them and they begged us to remain longer
among them.
We spent our evenings in our date hut, for our hostess had lost f
her house by fire and white ants, so she too is living in a date hut at
present. Some evenings we sang Arabic hymns to the servants, while
other evenings I spent in Beebie Thraia’s tent; I read often to her
from the Bible, and one evening while I was reading the life of Joseph,
I wished I could have taken her picture as she sat bent over drinking in
every word. Joseph’s beautiful forgiving spirit was such a contrast to
the “eye for eye, tooth for tooth” spirit among the Moslems. When I
had finished it was late and as I was leaving I said to her, “You have
asked me where is the truth. Now do you see which book tells the truth ?”
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Sometimes the women did not come until late in the morning, and
sometimes they came early and left early, so that I had extra time to •f
go walking with my hostess. It was on these occasions together that we
had some earnest heart to heart talks. One day we talked about the
Trinity, and I used the illustrations I had.read'in the Missionary Review
of the World, about electricity, and salt, and plain water being three in
one. She was intensely interested and in all our quiet times together
she has never resisted the Gospel, but rather shows a questioning after i
something better than she, now experiences. I praise God for answering t
prayer in stirring her to read the Gospels of Matthew and John which ft
1 left her before I went home on furlough. This lime I have given her
a Bible and I ask your prayers that she may be faithful in readiug.it.
I heard her from my own hut reading the Bible in the places I had !
selected for her. She was an interesting woman to walk with through
the gardens, because she could tell me about the plants and trees.
Just before I left I had to do a second eyelid for Heela and as l
put on the dressings I took special care that everything was absolutely
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clean and dry, for she got her other dressings soaked with blood, and
I wondered why. I soon learned the cause when prayer times came
around. She is a most bigoted Mohammedan, and I never read much il
from my Bible before I saw Heela moving away! When she had to A'
pray, because she could not use water on her dressings, she rubbed her
hand in the sand and then over her face. After she had put her head
to the ground five times a day, of course the fresh blood would ooze out •m
of the wound on to her dressings! But since it was not alarming I did
not say anything to her. Although she has lived among the Beduin she
knows how to read a little. Beebie Thraia used to ask her to read the
Bible to her, but that was asking, too much from poor old Heela! 1 am
glad I shall have another time to be with her, for I want to study her
case further.
We had a very interesting time with my hostess the last night we
spent with her. The next morning she walked all the way to the water’s
edge to see us off safely. There were quite a number of people down
at the seashore to bid us farewell and they asked us to come again.
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