"Holding you in my arms makes me feel alive, my sweet," I whispered into my girlfriend Samira Ali's ear as we walked through Vanier Parkway together. After waiting an eternity for the OC Transpo bus at the Rideau Center, we decided to walk home. Public transportation in the City of Ottawa absolutely sucks, trust me on that one. That's especially true in the brief, shimmering summer months.
"You're such a romantic, Suleiman," Samira says with a smile, and I smile at her innocently while gently rubbing that magnificent butt of hers. Samira gasps and pretends to be shocked, and we both burst out laughing. Once upon a time, Samira would have frowned upon such public displays of affection but not anymore. Nope, my lady has "evolved" since we met, and so have I.
Samira Ali was born in the City of Jerada, northeastern Morocco, to a Yemeni mother, Halima Kader and a Moroccan father, Ibrahim Ali. This lovely lady moved to the City of Ottawa, Ontario, with her family in the late 1990s and has been living here ever since. We come from two different worlds, Samira and I. The fact that we met and ended up together is, in and of itself, almost a miracle.
My name is Solomon "Suleiman" Clarendon. I was born in the City of Calgary, Alberta, to a Jamaican immigrant mother and a white Canadian father. My parents, David Clarendon and Josephine Thomas divorced when I was younger, due to cultural and personal differences. Alright, they argued constantly and honestly, they were no good together, alright? Like many young people from similar households, I grew up with a jaded view of marriage.
Calgary, where I was born, is a nice place to be from but not a nice place to live if you're a visible minority. I stuck around for school only, determined to get out first chance I got. I graduated from the University of Alberta with a Master's degree in business in the summer of 2013, and moved to the City of Ottawa, Ontario, looking for work. Somebody forgot to tell me that the City of Ottawa is the land of polite racists.
While not as outspoken as us Prairie folks on racial issues, Ottawa folks are definitely a bigoted and passive-aggressive, quietly sleazy and deeply prejudiced bunch. I didn't know that the lily-white business world of Ottawa would see me as a threat because of my great height ( I'm six-foot-four ), brown skin and wavy black hair, the result of my partial African heritage.
Tall, good-looking and highly educated biracial guy like myself ought to do well in the Canadian business world, right? Most likely to succeed, that's what people used to say about me in high school. I actually believed it myself. I thought life was going to be easy. Man was I wrong! For ages I looked for work throughout Ottawa and couldn't find any, and spiraled into a dark path, and began abusing alcohol and drugs.
Today, I work at a call center for CIBC, also known as the Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce, and make nineteen bucks per hour. I work in a tall building and get to dress professionally. Those are the ONLY perks of my job. I work long hours but I make time for family and friends. Got to have balance in your life, you know?
While at an Alcoholics Anonymous meeting, I met a truly remarkable gal. Samira Ali, a six-foot-tall, gorgeous young Moroccan-Canadian Muslim woman. Look, the last person I expected to see at an AA meeting is one of them Muslims. I am ashamed to say that's how I thought back then. Today, I am a proud new Muslim, just so you know. At the time, I didn't know Jack about Islam, or any religion for that matter.
My mother is a lapsed Catholic and my father is a staunch atheist. Religion isn't something we were big on, you know? I just knew that Muslims weren't the drinking type, especially the Muslim females who went about with their hair all covered up. Shows you how much I knew about people, right? Yup, I had a lot to learn.
"So, what are you doing here?" I asked the Hijab-wearing young Middle-Eastern woman who sat next to me. In a room full of men and women of all ages and colors, this broad stood out like a sore thumb. Samira, for my sweetheart was the lady in question, shot me a wuthering look.
"Same reason you're here, buddy, now be quiet!" Samira said, in a sarcastic tone. Again, I was kind of surprised that Samira Ali spoke to me that way because I thought Muslim women were submissive. This broad was anything but soft and sweet. When I looked into those golden brown eyes of hers, Samira Ali glared at me defiantly.