There’s nothing much to water. No fat, no carbs, no salt, no sugar, little taste. Frozen, vapor, or liquid, there’s not much to it.
Yet water is the single most essential element for life. It comprises most of our bodies and much of the world. Trekking across the desert, we ration our water assertively. In our exploration of the cosmos, we ardently seek water. Farmers carve into earth to plant seeds only once water has been located. From divining rods to space ships to artesian wells, mankind has always yearned for water.
When our body is parched, it’s water we crave to restore it.
When our thirst is deep, it’s water we demand to slake it.
When our skin is grimy, it’s water we require to clean it.
When our souls ascend, it’s water we choose to honor the journey.
Water is everything.
So tell me – what’s the water of your story?
Just a thought 45
Waterfall image courtesy of Pixaby
Sharon Bonin-Pratt's Ink Flare 
Comments on: "Nothing Much" (44)
another interesting thought, dear Sharon — am also remembering how I was a fat kid (when kids were skinny, & bullying was considered normal part of siblings & kid friendship) that when I learned that I could drink all the water I wanted, it has been my friend ever since
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So very sorry to hear you were bullied as a child. But look at the talented, compassionate adult you’ve become. And yes, water is a great friend.
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❤
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I can’t swim, but i love beaches and water. And in this hot steamy summer, I just can’t get enough
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This sweltering summer – ugh! I’m hiding indoors as much as possible, but we have no AC in our house, so I’m taking advantage of nearby stores, pretending to be passionately interested in 2B pencils and bags of carrots. It’s taking me hours and hours to make up my mind about which pencils or carrots to buy – they both come in yellow and orange.
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LOL What a damn funny reply. Stay cool Shari.
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LOL! 😁 I’m doing exactly the same thing over here, Shari!!
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Mall shopping has its advantages – like air conditioning.
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The first story that came to mind was my dad teaching me how to water witch with a coat hanger. He straightened it out, made a half circle with it, and put one end in his mouth (under his upper lip) and the other end balanced on his finger.
We owned five acres in the high desert, and he walked along showing me where the water ran under ground by the direction the wire’s curve moved. A strange concept to wrap my six-year-old mind around: water can be in a stream under the dirt. I couldn’t picture how that was possible–how did the dirt keep from caving in?
The fact the wire could find the water’s flow didn’t phase me. I tried and could feel it move on its own. Weird.
Once we drilled a well, the water had a high iron-ore content. We used it for washing dishes and our hands. We took sponge baths as the hot water heater was very small and we didn’t have enough hot water to shower. We brought drinking water with us, as the ore taste wasn’t great.
We also had an outhouse for many years before the septic tank was installed. But that’s another story.
My second thought when it comes to water is my joy swimming with tropical fish. If I had to chose an animal to be, I’d love to be a dolphin…I could live in water then.
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Jenna, I love the story about your dad and the water witch. So much wisdom and lore wrapped up in that. As for being a dolphin – sometimes I’d like to check out and just leap through waves all day. You did a great job bringing stories to the front – thank you.
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Lovely, Shari! Water is my gateway and medium for leisure!
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Yes, it is that for you especially. You get so much pleasure in water and share your enthusiasm with others. Great job, Terri, showing others the glory of water.
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Love your water thought! You are so right that water is life. Not sure what my “watered-down” story is other than I take water for granted but you’ve given me something to think about, wondering what else and who else I take for granted.
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I don’t think you take much for granted, Judy. You seem to recognize the worth of every element and every person. Consider how much water you employ in your art and how beautifully expressive your creations are. Those are your stories.
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The most beautiful scenes in nature are of lakes, rivers, seas, waterfalls. Perhaps water should be considered sacred. Maybe then we’d stop wasting it and polluting it.
Beautiful post, Sharon – one to raise our consciousness.
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Thank you, Betty, for pointing our the holiness of water. Water is a sacred element for many cultures and faiths. Baptisms, cleansing rituals, and conversions representing new life, fresh starts, and rebirth. The 12 Thai boys who were rescued from the cave were drenched in water as one of their healing rituals after they were released from the hospital.
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I hadn’t heard about that, Sharon (the Thai boys being drenched in water, as a healing ritual). A sacred catharsis!
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There was a program about how they rescued the boys, and it included how nearly all of them entered a Buddhist monastery. Water was poured over their heads, perhaps it’s done for all boys entering.
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Wish I had seen that program. I’m hoping one of those involved will write a book about it someday. What they went through is unimaginable to me.
It is telling, how in most cultures worldwide there have always been various water ceremonies, rituals, and traditions.
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I think it was a PBS program which means it will be repeated. And certainly someone will make a book of this extraordinary rescue. The way that the Thai people dealt with the boys and their rescue reflects their Buddhist values. Here in the U.S., someone would have already brought a lawsuit.
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Sadly, that’s true (about lawsuits here). I’ll try to watch for a repeat of the program on PBS. Thanks again for telling me about it, Sharon.
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It’s definitely worth watching if you can find it.
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Sharon, I love your post about the most important element for life as we
know it. It is life giving and sustaining. It also gives pleasure.
I do love water to look at – as in the beautiful waterfall – to drink, to swim
and to watch it feed the earth and bringing plants to life.
I read this early morning as we in the North are non-plussed by the absence
of rain and the heat of the sun. We are not used to do the rain dance
but with fields turned brown and forest fires raging the pray for rain
is high on the agenda.
Miriam
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You are absolutely right, Miriam. We so desperately need water here in the sweltering and dry western United States while in other areas it’s flooding. Yes to the rain dance – wish I’d thought of that.
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Beautiful post, Sharon. When I think of water, our camping and backpacking trips come to mind when at the end of a hot day, we enjoy a dip in a freshwater lake, pure awesomeness. Trips to the beach, enjoying the tranquility of the ocean’s melody are also favorite outings. Then again, I love drinking water. Some people don’t like it or find it difficult to gulp down 8 glasses each day. Me? I have no problem, all day long. I also agree with Betty that water should be considered sacred because it is that deserving of not being wasted. 💗
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Water is so essential yet we give it short shrift unless someone reminds us to conserve it. We must do so much more to protect this resource, and perhaps it starts with relishing its freshness on our throats.
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The sound of water soothes. This post of yours has me reflecting on what I’ve used as my water in the past and will I admit to the water I have leaned onto for too long. Such a great write, Shari. Insightful.
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You really understood what I was saying, Audrey. And you brought up what I left out: that sometimes we get caught up in “old” water and have trouble finding the fresh. Thanks for a wonderful contribution.
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I’m grateful for your voice. You’ve always enlightened me with your poetry and prose. Thank you..
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You’ve been writing poetry on your blog long before I had the courage to share mine – you’re my model. So I thank you as well, Audrey.
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Yours has the depth I wish mine had more often. You wait and share those remarkable thoughts which leave a powerful suggestion. I adore that.
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Don’t sell yourself short, Audrey. I have difficulty revealing emotional depth.
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Water is life and inspiration to me. Just a tiny bit of it and you can paint – isn’t that just amazing? Just a few droplets on hot skin feel divine and refreshing. Ever since I wandered through Greece now nearly 20 years ago, it has become favourite drink.
But then there’s also the dangerous side: drink more than 6 litres and you get poisened. Or flooding. Like so many things it has two sides.
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Thank you, Sarah, for wonderful additions to the conversation. I’ve been watercolor painting a card for a friend, adding layers of delicate color to build shadows, and always with the tiniest amount of water on my brush. Now why didn’t I make that essential connection? Well, glad you did.
And the yin to the yang – we’ve had dangerous flooding in parts of the U.S., and deathly fires here in California where it’s so dry and everything is parched. We need some of that rain water but not the floods.
Balance.
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Sometimes we simply can’t see the forest for the trees.😉
What a lucky friend to get one of your watercolours! I always think that things like these are far better gifts than anything else – well, apart from books.😉
Oh, yes, balance is so important and so often it can not be achieved, either by man or by nature.
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It’s just a card and I doubt she’ll keep it. Painting puts me in a meditative state so I don’t get too sentimental over whether or not anyone keeps them. Books mean more to me as well, especially if they’re autographed.
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Well, I don´t know about her of course, but I keep every card I get especially when they´re handmade ones which sadly isn´t often the case.
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For me, painting the card is part of the giving process but I let it go when the card is sealed in the envelope. What is done with it afterward is not my business.
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I’d like to reach that state of mind one day too as for now I’m holding on to every piece I make. You’re very Zen, Shari!
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I’ve been told that by others, Sarah. I take it as a compliment, thank you.
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It was definitely meant as one. In fact I’ve been thinking about your comment a lot now and the more I do think about it the more I grasp the beauty of the philosophy that stands behind it. 😊
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I’d go a little nuts if I worried about every gift, bought or made, I ever gave. Once one was re-gifted to me and I was hurt, – What do they mean by re-gifting it? – but later I laughed. Or given to Goodwill or put out at the garage sale or worst of all – thrown in the trash. I want my gifts to be used until they are used up but it isn’t my choice, only my hope.
My parents were very odd about gifts. They gave generous gifts, especially cash, to us, their children, but it always came with a phantom but weighty price tag – “You owe us because we gave you XXX.” When we gave them gifts, they were most often angry and ungracious – “How dare you, you can’t afford to give us a present.” It taught me that the real gift is in thinking about the person I want to gift and finding or making them something from my heart. I’m often not there when the gift is received so my part is done when it’s given/sent. I have to leave it at that, hoping my gift is appreciated but not worrying about its next destination.
I’ve gotten so relaxed that I rarely even photograph these little cards before I pop them in the mail. They are painted and sent and that’s enough for me and I hope enough for them.
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Phantom price tags on gifts can be hard. Just like comparing the worth of one gift with another. Or as you said being re-gifted. Which is why some people stop gifting each other all together like one of my aunts suggested. It can be a relief at times especially when you don’t know what to gift in the first place.
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Which is why I stopped accepting my parents’ gifts and learned to just be there for them until they learned I didn’t want anything but their love and finally were grateful for that.
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