- American Muslim director Mustafa Davis, who documented his stepfather’s spiritual journey, shares with Anadolu his 'surreal' experience
MEDINA
American Muslim David Noble has fulfilled a promise he made to his late wife by performing Umrah at the age of 83 and joining part of the approximately 450-kilometer Hijrah journey between Mecca and Medina.
David Noble, who embraced Islam about 20 years ago along with his American wife Sandra Susan Noble, lost his wife, whom he described as his “soulmate,” two years ago.
Noble, who had dreamed of performing Umrah with his wife but lost her before realizing that dream, shared his journey to Islam and the holy lands with Anadolu.
He explained that he was introduced to Islam in 2007 through his stepson, filmmaker Mustafa Davis, mentioning that he was a “tried and true Christian” before becoming Muslim.
“Until my son went away for a while, when he was, I think, 16 years old, and when he came back home, he came with a gift. He gifted me Islam," he said.
Noble said that after becoming Muslim, he took care of his ill, bedridden wife for a long time, and after her passing, he devoted much of his time to learning more about Islam. “I am so excited about what I've been learning about our prophet, peace be upon him, and it's kind of sparked a fire in me to learn more.”
He added that Islam provides strong guidance on how to live, explaining: “Islam came with a really good set of instructions on how to live life, how to worship our Lord, how to treat our neighbors, how to treat people. It wouldn't matter what color the skin was or how they looked. We are obligated to be kind, and I don't see that anywhere except in Islam.”
‘Life isn’t easy—let’s do it’
Noble said his son Mustafa Davis encouraged him to go for Umrah. “When my son told me about my ability to go to (Umrah), that he was going to take me on my Umrah and how I could take my soul partner, Sandy Sue, with me, I jumped at the chance, and then he made a little icing on the cake. He told me about the Umrah walk, and I thought he said: ‘It's not an easy one,’ dad. And I said, life isn't easy. Let's do it. And I am so glad I did.”
Noble admitted he had doubts due to his physical condition when he learned the Hijrah walk would be about 450 kilometers (nearly 280 miles), saying he walked as much as he could and continued the rest of the journey by vehicle.
Describing his Umrah experience, Noble said: “My son took me to the edge of the crowd that was circling in the Kaaba and had me keep my head down the whole time until we were in front of it. And he said, ‘Okay, pop, look up.’ Wow. Amazing.
“Kaaba was way bigger than I thought it was, and it was way more beautiful than I could imagine. It was simplistic in design. It wasn't gaudy. It was just a spiritual thing. You know, you just have to be there to see it, to feel it.”
If this does not “impress you with how important this is, I don't know what will. This is the best vacation around.”
Journey through his son’s eyes
American Muslim filmmaker Mustafa Davis said he turned his stepfather’s journey into a documentary titled “In Her Name.”
Davis explained that his mother, Sandy, married David Noble when he was two years old, and they raised him together.
He said he discovered Islam at age 24 and described himself as a mischievous youth. “I converted to Islam at age 24 and so, you know, he married my mother when I was two. So I grew up with him, you know, he helped raise me. And you know, I wasn't Muslim at that time, so I wasn't the greatest kid. We didn't have the greatest relationship. And if you had asked me back then, that one day we would both be Muslims, and when we'd be walking arm in arm, hand in hand, around the Kaaba and walking ... from Mecca to Medina, I would have said, ‘Are you crazy? There's no way, no way possible whatsoever.’”
Davis said his stepfather called him two weeks after his mother’s death and told him he had begun studying Islam more seriously. “When my mother passed, about two weeks after that, he called me and said that he was studying Islam now, and they had converted in 2007 so they've been Muslim for a long time, but like a lot of Americans, they will convert, but maybe not practice fully after they have it in their heart. And so I don't think he ever really prayed or learned much about Islam after he converted, but he believed. But then he said he was studying, and so I was a bit amazed, because it's, you know, many years later, now you're starting to study.”
“So, I said, why? And he said, ‘You know, when my wife passed, several very righteous scholars gave her glad tidings, right? They said that she has nothing to fear, right? That Allah loves her, and she's going, inshallah, to a good place, and that Allah will inshallah be pleased with her.’ And he said, ‘but they didn't say that I have the same, and so if I want to be with her now in the hereafter, I have to earn it. So, I want to go to Mecca, to Medina, to show God that I'm serious about this faith, so that I can be with my wife in the hereafter,’ and so I said hello, as a filmmaker, this is a story you have to tell.”
Even taking two steps ‘would be enough for me’
Davis emphasized that despite serious health issues, his stepfather did not give up on the journey, saying: “Ten years ago, he had quadruple bypass surgery on his heart. He had a stroke last year, and he had a heart attack three weeks ago before he came, and so we knew it was going to be a difficult, a difficult path for him.”
He said he considered canceling the trip, but Noble refused: “I even tried to pull the plug on the trip and tell him no, that's it, it's not necessary, you know, we don't have to do this, and he said, ‘No, it's necessary, and I have to do it. Even if I just walk … two steps on the hijra, just to show the Prophet my love for him, and to show Allah that I'm following in his path, it would be enough for me.’”
Davis added that they grew up in modest conditions in California and described the journey with his stepfather as a “surreal” experience, noting how deeply meaningful it was for him.
“So this is the greatest trip of my life,” Davis recalled his stepdad telling him.
