Filling the Pool

By Michelle (Graceful, Faith in the Everyday)

Last week as temperatures soared into the 90s we spread a plastic tarp on the backyard grass, hauled the electric pump out of the basement and inflated the kids’ pool. We upgraded this year. A couple of weeks ago we trolled the aisles of Menards until we found a suitable pool – one that’s  a step or two up from the standard kiddie pool but yet  can still squeeze into our postage-stamp backyard.

The kids danced around the blue lagoon as freezing water sloshed from the hose into the pristine plastic. It took several hours for the pool to fill to the top – 1,445 gallons in all – but it wasn’t until the pool was completely full that we noticed the problem. Because of the slight slope in our yard, the pool was uneven. Unfortunately, the filter side of the pool happened to be the shallower side, so instead of sucking in water, the filter wheezed air, straining the motor and threatening to burn out.

There was only one viable solution: drain the pool and move it to a flatter spot.

So that’s what we did. Granted, we used a few buckets to water the plants and flowers in our yard. And the water we drained from the pool was useful for the grass. But still, while the pool drained and as it filled again with another 3,463 gallons of water, I couldn’t help but think about how that water could have been used much more productively in many parts of the world. How those few thousand gallons might have saved actual human lives.

Consider these statistics*:

• 1.2 billion people in the world live without access to clean water.
  
  
• 5 million people die every year of water-related illnesses.
  
  
• A child dies every 15 seconds of a waterborne disease.
  
  
• Women and children in developing countries invest 200 million hours each day fetching water. That’s equal to a full-time workforce of 25 million people fetching water eight hours a day, seven days a week.

Given those dire statistics, it’s not unreasonable to assume that the water drained from my kids’ pool could have saved the lives of an entire family, perhaps even more than one family living in Africa. Instead, all it did was waterlog my lawn.

I’m not suggesting that we don’t allow our kids plastic pools or that we all embark on a well-drilling mission in sub-Saharan African. But I am suggesting that we can all do something, even if it’s a relatively small something.

Blogger Matt Windley of Becoming Last has launched an ambitious campaign to make a dent in this global clean water crisis. With the organization Charity Water, he aims to raise $1 million in the month of June – an ambitious goal, but one that can certainly be accomplished with the power of social media. You should know that Charity Water gives 100% of donations to their global water projects, so you can be assured that every bit of your contribution will be put to good use.

The next time you fill your kids’ pool or indulge in an extra-long shower, think about how much you enjoy having unlimited access to clean water. I know I will. And then will you please consider joining me in helping to make even a small difference in the lives of 1.2 billion people worldwide this year? Click on the button or visit the My Charity Water $1 Million – 1 Month Campaign page directly. Thank you!

*statistics taken from the book The Hole In Our Gospel, by WorldVision President Richard Stearns

Michelle is a Christian wife and mother of two originally from Massachusetts now living in Nebraska. She is a part-time writer, editor and fundraiser for Nebraska PBS/NPR. Michelle loves to write about how her family illuminates God's presence in her everyday life, and on finding (and keeping) faith in the everyday. Michelle enjoys reading, running and writing. Be sure to go visit her blog, Graceful, Faith in the Everyday.

Comments

[Laura Hegfield]

Thanks for this frank post Michelle...last fall, my daughter lead a group of other kids performing skits about world hunger and lack of clean available water for families all around the world to raise awareness and money for Church World Service through our local CROP Walk. http://orli-shines.blogspot.com/2010/10/89cents-what-would-life-be-like-living.html (cute video of the kids performing a play my daughter wrote, directed and performed in, inspired by educational materials from CWS...we all have to change our habits and heal the planet and aid our brothers and sisters around the world!

[Jamie @ Six Bricks High]

I will go check it out. Thanks for the info.

[Matt]

Thanks for sharing that Michelle! I think one of the things that impacts me most about all this is that the deaths are so preventable. We have the money and we have the resources. We just put them into other things.

[mary kathryn]

That's happened to our Easy Set pool too! Ugh. We doused our neighbors' yard one year. Now my husband takes GREAT pains to perfectly level the round area for the pool. He even invented a new took this year, with a long level attached to it, for this purpose. It's nearly exact. As you say, that's a lot of good water. In the winter, we take the pool down, and put pavers in the area, with a fire pit in the middle. It looks great, and we don't have to have a big, round dead space in the yard.

[Shawn Smucker]

Thanks Michelle. Ever since I heard those statistics on water consumption, I find myself thinking a lot about the water that my family uses. As you say, I think there's something powerful about the combination of thankfulness and action - plain old guilt doesn't really get me very far.

[Heart n Soul]

Great article and good to know about this cause.