44 pounds, 80 minutes

Are you planning to watch TV tonight? I encourage you to spend 80 minutes watching 44 pounds instead. It's hauntingly beautiful, sweetly silent, save for muted voices, the occasional footfall on rock. If you don't have 80 minutes to spare, watch the 2-minute time-lapse version. Viewing it was enough to make me want to see the whole thing. Afterward, please take time to tell me what you learned, what you felt, how you might respond.


44 Pounds from water.org on Vimeo.


44 Pounds, 2 Times a day

Berhane makes this trek twice a day, every single day. Imagine hauling water this way when you are sick with the stomach flu, or your children, whom you must leave at home, have chicken pox.

How did you feel when you saw that young woman climbing down into the well, clinging to the wall, and lifting out the jerry can to her friend? What do you think would have happened if the second well had been too dirty, like the first?

Give water, Save lives

Nearly one billion people lack access to safe water and 2.5 billion do not have improved sanitation. The health and economic impacts are staggering.

Water.org

Every minute, four children die because of water-borne illness. Every minute. Organizations like water.org and Water Charity, are working hard and fast to help villagers in Ethiopia, India, Haiti and many other countries dig wells, install pumps. They show parents how to save their children's lives by using some of their precious fuel to boil water.

Can you help? Will you spread the word through your blog, Facebook, or Twitter? It takes only a moment if you use the buttons immediately below this post. If you have a little extra cash, will you take time to donate? Both sites linked to above have easy to use donate buttons on their home pages.

Why it matters

Apart from the sheer humanitarian need to help when we learn of another's distress and have the means to be of use, why should we care so much about water?

We in the developed West are fortunate to have all the water we need--for now. According to many scientists, the world is in a planet-wide water crisis that may result in water wars sooner than any of us imagine. Very likely you and I will live long enough to experience the first wave of these. Crazy as it sounds today, our children and grandchildren may face much worse.

For now, we are the lucky ones. Beginning to know and understand the problem is an important first step. Lending a hand to the real people already experiencing the crisis is an equally important second step.

What can you do to help the one-sixth of the world's children who do not have safe, clean water to drink? Can you help save a few lives today? Will you help spread the word? Spare a few dollars? It's the Ordinary thing to do.

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We make peace in a million small ways every day.

All text and images, unless otherwise noted, copyright L. Kathryn Grace. All rights reserved.