I still remember the first day I walked into Miftaah.

I went up to one of the teachers and told him, pretty confidently, that I wanted to learn Arabic in one year.

He said something I didn’t want to hear: “If you really want to learn Arabic and understand it, it’s a journey.”

I was young and impatient. I had this habit of setting a goal, hitting it, and moving on to the next thing. I figured Arabic would be no different  learn it fast, check the box, done.

I thought I was walking into Miftaah to learn Arabic. I didn’t realize I was walking into a journey that would change my life.

One year turned into two. I finished the Associate program, joined the Seekers Intensive, and now, Alhamdulilah I’m a full-time seminary student. Somewhere in there I stopped looking for the finish line.

What Miftaah taught me had little to do with speed. It taught me patience when I wanted everything right away, to care more about why I was learning than how much I’d gotten through, and that when it comes to drawing closer to Allah, there is no finish line.

What started as a place to learn Arabic became a place I call home teachers who cared, classmates who became family, and a room where I never felt judged for what I didn’t know, only encouraged to keep going.

That’s why I’m raising $5,000. I want someone else to walk through those doors thinking they’re just signing up for a class, and find what I found instead.

If Miftaah has ever meant something to you, or if you believe in keeping sacred knowledge alive, I’d be honored to have you join me. May Allah accept it from all of us and make it a source of ongoing reward.