"Water is Life"...I'm not sure this is an official Malawian proverb but every Malawian that I've ever spoken with about water says these exact same words. Living here in Malawi I've come to believe this statement more and more. We regularly go for days without a drop of water. We have buckets and tubs all around our house filled at all times with water "just in case". We don't have a "tank" like most people do because we are only in this home on a temporary basis so we didn't want to pay nearly $1000 for a water tank. Therefore, when the Water Board stops sending water through the pipes (for seemingly unknown reasons) then we are without water completely.
Over the past few months the water outages have gotten much much worse. You may remember some of our posts from a month ago when we arrived home from the States and went for days without showers because of the water problem. And we were all sick with a flu-like virus on top of that. The rumor at that time was that the power was out because they were afraid the reservoir would run dry before rainy season. So they were conserving water. Well, this past week was probably the longest and worst water outage to date. We had not one drop of water in our home for 4 days. And did I mention that it's hot here!? And muddy!? My kids love to play in the dirt and mud so we ALWAYS need to have some way to get clean. Well, this week we got clean by using baby wipes all week long. The rumor this time was that too much rain came too quickly so they couldn't clean the water fast enough. hmmm....
Something happens to my emotions and attitude when I have no water. An anxiety that I've never felt creeps into my body and won't let go. Electricity I can handle. Really, we just light some candles and enjoy a little peace and quiet. But water?? No, I will never be able to get used to not having water. J is crawling all around right now. He never stops except to sleep. And no matter how clean you think your floors are when you see your 11 month old with dirty knees and feet you realize all of the unseen dirt that lingers. Baths are a must!
But the longer the outage went the madder I got. I mean I seriously prayed and tried to remain calm. What are you trying to teach me through this Lord? Why must we endure this?? How much more can I handle? Then, Friday night (on day 4 of no water) I got onto Facebook and read of the unfolding news in Connecticut. There was my answer. My lack of water seemed so trivial, so silly. I was focused on what I didn't have and not focused on the blessings that I DID have!!!! After crying over the tragedy and pleading to my Lord that we are ready for HIS return....I thanked HIM that all I was having to endure was lack of water. I mean, how simple of a lesson is that?? Yes, I thanked God for the trials that He has chosen to give me because I will gladly endure this than have to live through what those 26 families in CT are having to go through. So now, as I sit without power I'm again thankful. Thankful that my children are all currently playing Barbies and Superheroes together on the floor of our living room. I choose to give thanks in all circumstances (even if I'm a little too stubborn to learn that lesson sometimes).
And you know what? At 2 am that very night/morning the water returned. After praising God for the blessing I have and going to sleep dirty, sad, but thankful...He brought the water back. Yes, I got up at 2 am and took a nice long shower. Then I spent an hour refilling every water bucket in our house since we are never sure when the water will go out again. Lesson learned? For now, maybe. But I know I'll regress and He will have to be patient with me and teach me yet again. He still has so much left to teach me. I'm only scratching the surface of my training. Thank you for your patience with me God!
Water pitchers waiting to be refilled. You can see the very last of our filtered water left in the bottom of our filter. We have never gotten this low on water before.
Empty water buckets beside the kitchen sink. These are usually filled with water for cleaning dishes and mopping in case there is no water. These are some of our "just in case" buckets which are usually full.
Water came on for 30 minutes on Friday afternoon and we frantically began washing dishes and filling buckets.
We even put these buckets out to catch rain water from our roof. We could at least use this to flush our toilets.
"On the last day of the feast, the great day, Jesus stood up and cried out, “If anyone thirsts, let him come to me and drink. Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, ‘Out of his heart will flow rivers of living water.’” Now this he said about the Spirit, whom those who believed in him were to receive, for as yet the Spirit had not been given, because Jesus was not yet glorified."
(John 7:37-39)
Jill
