Trying To

Yesterday my sister, daughter, and I went to Letchworth State Park for the day. It had been a few years since I’d been there. We live so close to such natural wonders that we often take it for grated. We shouldn’t. We’ve been to these spots many times over the years. Each visit is a chance to experience it all over again, anew. And, look back through our collective memories and remember years past.

Yesterday evening, a water main in our neighborhood broke, causing us to lose water pressure. It was repaired quickly, but we need to boil water for 24–26 hours, as there is a change that “untreated water and harmful microbes” could have entered the water supply.

Having to use boiled (or bottled) water not only for drinking, but for cooking, cleaning, and brushing teeth was really starting to annoy me. And then, as I was cleaning dishes, the phrase “first world problem” came to mind. First, as a joke. And then, it hit me just how lucky I really am. So many people across the world would love to have such a minor inconvenience as this with water. I can still turn on the tap in my comfortable kitchen to get what would pass as “clean” water, “freely” flowing. And, carry that water all of two feet to my electric stovetop to easily boil it, just to make sure.

So, I went to charity: water, a cause my daughter first brought to my attention a few years ago, and made another donation.