Hope Out of Chaos

As I read a blog entry after blog entry, I found myself immersed in Riverbend’s writing and how powerful and candid it is. Her blog paints an authentic picture that we are rarely allowed to see about the war. The media distorts it by creating the war to be a political affair that eventually led to “liberation” but as Riverbend records her musings, her daily life, and takes is into her world, she gives a gripping account of what it really means to live in Baghdad during that period.

I found myself laughing at times when she debunks the myths with riveting, sardonic humor like how Iraqis do own a computer or how kids do not actually go to school on camels. Her writing, oftentimes, reminds me of Tim O’Brien’s, she tells it like it is and does not leave anything out. However, amid the humor, there was sorrow and grief intertwined. Sometimes, I had to take a break from reading because I felt devastated by how much she has lost and how everything in her life has changed.

It was intriguing how she called the war as an occupation and that no one owned anything anymore—ownership was obliterated and nothing belonged to anyone. As her blog grew gloomier, my knowledge of the war expanded. How devastating it was for her to not be able to sleep at night due to looters, raids, and hearing distant bombs exploding. One of her blog entries that really got to me was how she developed a new talent. She can now distinguish what gun was used if she heard shootings or whose side was shooting, etc., etc. Her writing style is impeccable as well; as a reader, I can envision myself with her in her car, waiting for the traffic to speed up, and making sure you don’t look at someone in the eye for fear of ‘causing trouble’.  

Her grim account of this whole ordeal reveals what it truly was like to live in Baghdad. The media always makes it look like every Iraqi is a criminal, when, in truth, they are victims mourning for the home they had lost. All in all, I am glad that Riverbend is somewhere safe and still is. I also hope that her wounds are not that deep so that they can begin to heal.