HW 32: A Pretty Horse with a Plait and a Bow…

In Riverbend’s, Baghdad Burning, Riverbend describes her experience school supply shopping on October 5, 2003. The day before her and her cousin‘s wife, S., went school supplies shopping for her 7 and 10 year-old nieces. “Every year his wife, S., takes the girls to pick out their own pencils, notebooks, and backpacks but ever since the war, she hasn’t let them step outside of the house--unless it is to go visit a relative” (Riverbend, 94). Riverbend, S., E., and an other cousin went to the stationary shop to look for school supplies. Riverbend and S., went inside while the men stayed in the car. S., was in a hurry so she went to go get pencils and crayons, while Riverbend went to go get copybooks. Riverbend took a Barbie and a Winnie the Pooh notebook. Riverbend also wanted to get fun erasers for the girls. So they got a strawberry eraser that smelt like peaches. It seems the Riverbend shops like Americans for school supplies. When I was younger, I remember having pictured notebooks and fun-shaped erasers. The only difference I see is that the men had to bring the women to the store to protect them and that the mother was too afraid of her kids safety to bring them to the store. Kids are kids though and what ever you pick out for them, just isn’t good enough. The 10 year-old girl was pleased with her school supplies, but the 7 year-old was quite unhappy with her Winnie the Pooh notebook. Riverbend tried to make matters better by telling the girl that it was a “pretty horse with a plait and a bow…” (Riverbend, 96). She was of course referring to Eeyore. The girl quickly replied that it was a purple donkey and “if I (Riverbend) liked donkeys so much, I could keep the copybook” (Riverbend, 96). Kids in America say sassy remarks like that just like Iraqi kids do. We not that much different, they just have a war in there backyard.