"Sa-Sa, my friend, you must teach me how to pray," Samuel Rosewood said enthusiastically, and he pointed to the words 'Family in Faith' written on his new blue jersey, along with the description Muslim Scholars Association of the Mississauga branch of the University of Toronto. It was Islamic Awareness Week, and after much soul searching, Samuel came to the conclusion that joining the faith was the right thing to do. After taking Shahada, Samuel took the moniker Samir Al-Tawil, meaning 'tall one.'
A native of the island of Grenada, in the heart of the Caribbean, Samuel Rosewood had become interested in Islam after moving to the City of Toronto to study Law. His parents Vincent Rosewood and Ankita Shaji-Rosewood of St. George, Grenada, raised him to be a good Catholic, but that was in the water at the moment. Samuel was a changed man. A big part of his interest in the world's fastest growing religion stemmed from his friendship with a particular lady...
Samuel had always been open-minded, the product of his unique parentage and his upbringing on the island of Grenada, where people of African descent along with Indians and a few Europeans combined to form a unique nation and culture. Samuel's father Vincent Rosewood is Afro-Grenadian, and his mother Ankita Shaji originally hails from the Kerala region of India. She came to Grenada for work, and ended up staying, getting married and building a life there.
The son of a fairly unique, interracial couple, Samuel Rosewood learned to understand the nuances and complexities of the world around him at an early age. He'd always been quite curious, and spoke several languages, among them English, French, Spanish and Hindi. When he won a coveted international scholarship which saw him move to the City of Toronto, Ontario, Samuel began the journey of a lifetime. At the University of Toronto's Mississauga campus, Samuel met a unique young woman, the lovely Sa-Sa.
"My brother, it will be my pleasure," Sayyida "Sa-Sa" Haddad replied enthusiastically, and the young Moroccan Muslim woman practically squealed in delight, playfully slapping Samuel's shoulder. Passersby walking around the CCIT Atrium of the Mississauga campus of the University of Toronto paused to look in their direction. There were dozens of Muslim students of all hues in the vast hall, standing next to makeshift kiosks, tables and displays showcasing the Islamic faith in all of its diversity and glory.
"Thank you for this gift," Samuel said, and the tall, strongly built and ruggedly handsome young man nodded gently at Sayyida as he clutched his copy of the holy book of his new faith. He was looking at the beautifully bound holy book with its dark emerald cover, unaware of the intense way a certain beautiful young woman was looking at him. You are mine, Sa-Sa thought, and she flashed Samuel a sweet smile when his gaze finally met hers once more. The two friends exchanged a hug, then Samuel walked away. The cute butt on that man, Sa-Sa thought, smiling naughtily.
From the moment that Sayyida Haddad first laid eyes on Samueluel Rosewood, the young woman knew that he was indeed special. And it wasn't just the butterflies that filled her chest whenever he walked by. At first, Sayyida thought that Samueluel was a fellow Muslim, mistaking his Afro-Indian heritage for that of a Somali person. Truth be told, the Somalis were fairly common around Toronto and Samueluel looked like one of them. As it turns out, the exotically beautiful brother came from much further away than Sayyida initially thought...
On the day that Sa-Sa met Samuel, he was walking around the Atrium, on his way to his next class, and she was handing out recruitment flyers for the Muslim Scholars Association. Most of the students ignored Sa-Sa, or else they quickly trashed the flyers that she handed them. Not Samuel, he stopped and took a flyer from her, and then looked into Sa-Sa's eyes before inquiring about her faith.
"Ma'am, I'm Samuel, I hear much about Islam and don't know what to believe, since I know the media is biased, I try to keep an open mind," Samueluel said to Sa-Sa, and she smiled at him, thrilled to hear those words. There were so many people out there with negative views of the Islamic faith, and Sa-Sa grew up feeling quite defensive in the face of such intolerance. It was refreshing to meet a young man who was open-minded, and frigging cute, too.
"My brother, I'm glad you feel this way, I'm Sayyida but everyone calls me Sa-Sa," the young woman replied, and when Samuel held out his hand for her to shake, she hesitated. This cutie doesn't know about social taboos of my faith and I don't want to scare him away, Sa-Sa thought. Smiling, Sa-Sa made a fist and bumped it against Samuel's, and the brother smiled and nodded. That's how it all began...
Sa-Sa was born in the City of Agadir, southern Morocco, and moved to the City of Toronto, Ontario, with her mother, Jamila Haddad, following her parents divorce. Sa-Sa missed her father Omar Haddad, who stayed in Morocco due to his position as a high-ranking member of the Royal Moroccan Army. The Haddad patriarch had risen to the rank of Colonel at the time of his divorce. Sa-Sa made a point of visiting her Baba every summer.