water water everywhere, and not a drop to drink....

how many times a day do you turn on the sink, the shower, the hose, to wash dishes, take a shower, wash your hands, water the lawn, do laundry, flush the toilet, drink some water. repeat. water. water. water. all the time, never a question.

where i live right now, for this year anyway, water is a luxury. everything we do that involves water has to be intentional. our showers, our dishes, cleaning, doing our laundry, flushing the toilet (yes we´re fans of the "if its yellow let it mellow...."well you know the rest)---we´re always thinking about how much water we´re using, and how to make it last longer. unlike most of our neighbors. we´re actually lucky because our water comes out of the faucet and we have a cistern that holds gallons of water. but when the powers out, or when the truck doesn´t come to, we too have to haul water out of the cistern and into buckets to shower and clean.

one day a few weeks ago, we lost power for two days straight, and it happened while we were in the middle of our BIG three month clean---so what could we do, well, we just proceeded by pulling water up out of the cistern, being so frugal with the usage, while trying our best to clean as meticulously as possible---and then after, when we were filthy dirty from cleaning our dirty house, we only had buckets of water to clean off with....now it doesn´t sound so difficult, but its moments like those when you would really appreciate water coming out of a shower spicket.

but this was only two days for us. for the majority of our neighbors, they have to constantly wait. wait for the water trucks (tanqueros) to come by while they shout Agua, Agua, trying to get their attention. if they are heard, the truck comes to their house and fills up trashcan like buckets that remain outside their house and serve as the storage of water they have until the next truck comes. if the truck comes. i have heard stories of people waiting eight days without water. imagine. eight days, without water. incredible.

and here we are in the hottest days of the year---and water is still not easily accesible. i was really thinking about this last week when we took our kids to the pool for their paseo. they were absolutely ecstatic. and i...well...was disappointed....kinda like "are you kidding me, this is the pool" if you could even call it that. it was literally a cement hole, with water that went up to your knees, but nevertheless, the kids had a ball. i just kept thinking--these kids live in ecuador, on the equator, where it is usually over 100 degrees, and some had never EVER been to a pool. ridiculous right? and i mean it rains like crazy here at night, but still that doesn´t even provide relief for the heat during the day.

i really just can´t stop thinking about it. water. something so essential, and here, so sparce.

and its not like i can even drink the water that comes out of our tap, because its not clean. ridden with parasites.....its crazy. i have literally gotten my shower down to two minutes too. turn the water on. turn the water off. shampoo, soap, face wash. turn the water on. rinse. get out. i´m a pro.

so yeah, just some food for thought. next time you turn on the water, and let it run without looking, or take a 1/2 hr shower, just think about all those places in the world where water is not so simple. where people have to be really conscious about water usage, and don´t have the luxury of not thinking about it. and i don´t mean to get all preachy on you all, its just something to think about, because honestly, before i came here, i never thought about it. and now, it´s always on my mind.

all is still really great here, i´m actually going to the beach this weekend with a bunch of people from the neighborhood. oh! and how could i forget! i´ve started teaching during my morning job! do´n´t know how i let that slip.....brief update: the school next to my clinic is running summer school classes for a month, and long story short, i got roped in to teach english. so now, for one month, i have twelve classes a week ranging from kinder to seventh grade----hysterical so funny, i love my kids. and teaching is soo fun. exhausting but fun. everyday i´ve left wtih no voice. we do songs and games and cute little rhymes---i always wanted to be a teacher, and now it´s like a get a little glimpse of what life would´ve been like. BUT, i´m also glad this is temporary, because its so hard to be creative 24/7, and think of how to entertain a classroom. so yeah, for 3 more weeks, my days are spent in front of class, acting ridiculous and trying to engage them however i can.

that´s about it. life is solid. always laughing, always smiling here. hope life is just as great in the northern hemisphere.

love you all,
miss you everyday,
jamie