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Yesterday I saw a boy walking a walkman (or the headphones of a walkman, in any case). He paid little attention to his pet, the twisted black plastic of long-unused headphones that he dragged behind him attached to a dirty wire. Sometimes I see little boys dragging balls, or bundles of cloth and twigs fashioned into balls, behind them in a similar manner. No G.I. Joes, no Barbies, no Transformers, nor even simple hand-crafted dolls. Just trash on wires.
The favorite toy for little boys in Kenema is slightly more involved: you roll the metal frame of a bicycle wheel (or a similar ring) in front of you, chasing it along with a stick that you hold parallel to the ground rubbing the top of the wheel at a tangent and thus pushing it on.
Occasionally I see older people playing draught, a board game similar to checkers. Scopee, one of the drivers for my organization, told me that people used to play it all the time, but most boards were destroyed or lost in the war, and now people don’t have the resources to make new ones and the time to lounge around playing games. His eyes lit up when I asked him about it and he talked enthusiastically of the game as a test of military strategy.
On Sunday mornings in Freetown, strong and wiry young men play soccer on Lumley beach. They dive into the sand, the ball regularly flies into the ocean, and everyone seems to have great fun. A rare few bars have televisions and crowds gather to watch the international soccer matches, always rooting for Manchester United.
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Disclaimer: Opinions expressed in the personal notes are my own. Facts presented are accurate to the best of my knowledge, but this site should not be taken as an authoritative resource.
Copyright © 2003 Julie Greene
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