Tom Facchine – Minute with a Muslim #375 – Major Influences from the U.S.

			major influences that are still kind of in the United States, definitely, probably my first teacher
was Sheikh John Starling, who operates in Cherry Hill, New Jersey.
		

			When I was just a new Muslim, you know, I'll never forget.
		

			At the time, I was living with my parents, I had just finished my first degree, I was working in
restaurants. And for my kind of getting up and running as a Muslim, the last thing I did was go to
the MSG,
		

			I was afraid of what other people would say, I wasn't sure you know how people are going to react.
And so I was praying, I was doing Ramadan and like, whatever, but it was all me by myself. And then
I got up the courage or I think I made a promise to myself during one Ramadan that Okay, after this
Ramadan, I'm going to start going to the masjid regularly. And I looked around, just like whatever
was the local machine, the one that was closest to me, and it happened to be this one, I think they
were renting out a different space for Joomla at the time, because they were a lack of space or
something. Anyway, I go to to Joomla. And nobody says hi to me anything. So now nothing. And
		

			actually, that went on for weeks, I want to say maybe two months, that I would go to the football.
And like I would just like slip in slip out. And nobody would kind of notice me or saying anything.
And I will never forget for the rest of my life. The first person who said Saddam to me,
		

			young guy, I'm not gonna name him, but I may Allah reward him because for a convert, you know, it's
a big deal. It's you can you you don't feel like you're part of the part of the crew or whatever.
And if you're in a space, maybe it can get a little cliquish, or you just don't think about it, you
don't think if you're just a normal regular machine going Muslim, about saying sometimes somebody
you don't know, or even noticing somebody that maybe you haven't seen before, you know, but for
those people who are commerce and who have to work up the courage to come to the MSG, for the first
time, it is important. It's important. And it was important for me, I'll never forget that first
		

			time that I got. And then after that, things started to open up. And so
		

			I think John kind of realized that I was kind of hanging around and he and introduced himself to me
and we kind of struck up a relationship. And that was the beginning of a very, very meaningful and
important relationship to me. I used to attend his classes at the masjid during the things that he
was teaching. Eventually, when I moved out of the area, he was the one who suggested to apply to go
study abroad, specifically to Medina. So he put me in touch with other people that were still in
Medina, Sheikh Rashid Asmodee, from the karate Institute and Sheikh Dr. talacre. Wyatt. And those
folks, he just handed me off to them. My when I got some Edina
		

			Rashid, the Sheikh Rashid, he picked me up from the airport, he kept me in his home, he helped me
get registered for classes seriously, every single I will be forever indebted to that brother, may
Allah reward him
		

			and the kindness that he showed, and you know, he's got a bunch of kids and played with his kids and
it was just a beautiful thing. And then he eventually left
		

			and my relationship probably Medina after that was more with with Dr. Tall here, Wyatt, who just had
every single turn, you know, the life of a student in Medina is not easy, you know, like you don't
know where your next rent is coming from, you don't know, if you really have to shut it out and not
think about it, you can go, you could go nuts, thinking about the finances, you just have no idea
except for the few students who are well off, but that stop most students, most students, you don't
know what's gonna happen. And every single time if something went down, that was basically you know,
who we turned to. And he helped us out a lot with different opportunities. He would just think of
		

			you, you know, if this lesson was going on, or this Sheikh was visiting from out of town or this or
whatever, you know, he was finishing his PhD, he was you know, kind of way above us little guys, but
he would always kind of think of us and reach out and try to make things you know, facilitate things
for us. And those are relationships I still, you know, have to stay and they're still doing that for
me. So I definitely stand on their shoulders and rely upon their assistance and their advice and
their and their help.