Water...

On Saturday morning I decided to do some hand washing. Unfortunately, half way through the process, the water ran out. Water don don. I thought it was a simple matter of someone forgetting to turn on the pump to pump water up to the tank on top of the house. However, I found out it was much more complicated. Not only are we being supplied with less water, but someone managed to damage the pump. So, there I was, without water. You would think I would have had water stored in preparation, but no. Seeing as we have had water non-stop for the past 5 months I didn't think it would be necessary.

It is amazing how much water I use without even thinking about it. Water for washing clothes, taking a shower, flushing the toilet, drinking, hand washing. I literally use water all the time. While preparing food in the kitchen I realized how often I actually wash my hands (which is a good thing I guess) because I kept turning on the tap to start washing my hands and faced with the 'no water' issue rather quickly.

Not being able to wash the dishes was annoying. Not being able to rinse my soapy clothes was a bit frustrating. And not being able to flush the toilet is just not pleasant. Fortunately on day 2 we were able to get 3 buckets of water to aid our situation. Not much, but better than nothing. I was also fortunate to able to shower at other people's houses on Saturday and Sunday.

In the end, I really can't complain. All I need to do is look at the world around me. I have neighbors who have to walk and collect water everyday, and have probably done so for years. There are children on the street that have to carry buckets of water on their heads multiple times a day. There are people who have to live without running water every single day. And they manage. They have to. So, although I hope we have water again soon, this has been a good reminder of how many people here (and in many places in the world) live. Let's remember that water is a precious commodity. It should not be taken for granted.

If you want to be a part of bringing clean and safe drinking water to people in developing countries visit:www.charitywater.org