Sinjur

I knew I should do it, but I didn’t know why. Ever had that feeling? 

I was living in Eritrea and had made friends with Nejat, a student in my husband’s high school math class. Nejat invited me to join her at “sinjur”. 

Invitation

I had no idea  what she was talking about. Even with her descriptions and our mixture of English and Tigre (the language I studied), I still only understood that it was something she went to every day. She said other students like her would be there, and ladies as well.

Pro-tip: Sometimes when you live in a culture other than your own, you find yourself saying yes to…well, you aren’t exactly sure what. Embrace the adventure.

Up to that time, I’d been searching, with no luck, for ways to meet ladies in this small market town in Eritrea, East Africa. I’d found it relatively easy to meet ladies from the main people group, but we studied a tribal language (Tigre) and the females who spoke that language were difficult to meet as they didn’t leave their homes much. However, Nejat was from this tribe, so even if I couldn’t speak the language spoken in class, she could translate for me. It seemed like a good idea to do this “sinjur”…whatever that was. What did I have to lose, right?

Sinjur

So one stifling afternoon, Nejat came to pick me up at my house. We walked the dusty road to town and when we got there, she guided me down a couple of streets to a side road lined with the typical square buildings and blue and green metal doors. She walked into one of them and I followed.

I stood in the doorway few moments as my eyes adjusted to the dim light inside. Black treadle sewing machines lined both sides of the room, from the front to the back. Fancy golden letters on each machine read, “Singer” (as in, Singer sewing machines).

Oooooh! Sinjur. Now I get it.

She led me to the back and introduced me to Zem Zem, the teacher. Zem Zem, round and smiley with a calm demeanor that permeated the room, allowed me to stay with Nejat during her class. I spent the next hour sitting beside Nejat and her machine, watching her operate the pedal with her feet and move the cloth in a free-hand style to skillfully embroider a pink flower onto the cream-colored muslin. No fancy computer-programmed machines like today…these machines didn’t even require electricity. Just some good ‘ole footwork.

This room, and all the machines, owned and run by the National Union of Eritrean Women, provided sewing classes for a nominal fee. From the looks of the occupied machines, Zem Zem had no problem keeping the classes full.

Just Do It

After attending sinjur with Nejat, I went home and told my husband I wanted to sign up for classes. Again, it was one of those times that I just knew I was supposed to do it, though it didn’t make sense. Most of the women attending the class didn’t even speak the language we were studying. But I  knew it was the right move. 

I signed up for an hour each day to learn how to embroider on the treadle machines. That was the easy part. As it turned out, Nejat could not attend class during the same time that I did, so I went alone. The first day I was nervous. Would I be able to navigate class and all the social aspects with out a translator?

My New Friends

Because I didn’t speak the national language and no one spoke English, the ladies who spoke Tigre naturally began to speak to me. These were the exact ladies I wanted to meet. And I discovered there were more Tigre-speaking ladies in class than I had originally thought. I began to make new friendships that extended beyond the walls of the sewing class.

The Lord’s plan became more clear to me. An hour a day with a room full of Tigre speaking ladies doing something they loved to do: it was perfect. I told Zem Zem (who, as it turned out, spoke Tigre as well) that I wanted to extend my lessons to two hours a day.

Lessons Learned:

• Embrace the adventure!

• Sometimes the Lord guides us to do things that don’t initially make a lot  of sense. We need to be in tune with His Spirit so that we follow Him when He leads. I’m sad to say that many times I have not done so. But looking back on my “Sinjur” days, I am thankful that I obeyed that “Still Small Voice”.

If we live by the Spirit, let us also keep in step with the Spirit.

Galations 5:25

What About You?

Have you ever felt in your gut that you were supposed to do something, even though it didn’t make sense? What did you do?