With the continuing construction down the street - and refitting of sewer pipes - we have experienced several brief shut downs of our water system, as pipes break and leaks need to be repaired.
But two days ago, we received a mailbox message: The water will be turned off from 8 till 4 on Friday. So today, we sit and wait (at 7:45 am) and wonder how we will manage.
A pitcher of cold water in the bathroom replaces the tap...
Pots full of water are sitting in the kitchen.
There will be no showers until the water is back on again. I'm a little anxious...
When I was a child, we didn't have running water in our home in Hay Lakes, Alberta (population: 300), or in the village of Kingman (my second home) ... My parents had to pump water by hand and heat it on the stove for my bath... I took drinks from a dipper in a pail of water (shared by everyone in the household). Getting the water we needed was a daily chore... just as it still is in many parts of the world.
But in the years since then, I have become accustomed to having water - as much as I want - at my fingertips...
Sometimes it's good to remind myself that being able to turn on a tap and get clean water is a luxury! Clean tap water became the norm in European and North American cities in the 20th century... in the last hundred years.
I'm spoiled - I take it for granted. I have never had to haul water into the house daily as my grandparents and parents did (until they moved into the city).... To them, water was a precious commodity.
Days like today remind me how lucky I am.
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