Dishes in the Tub

Last Summer...

The water gets turned off on my side of the school building for repairs of some kind or another.  I discover that the bathroom around the corner, on the south side of the building, still has water.  So for several weeks, I trot back and forth each day, filling my Brita filter and washing dishes.

I pile dishes into a wide metal bowl, grab the soap and scrubbing pad, and set up my little washing station in the tub.  I settle on a tiny stool, leaning over the tub, swishing soapy water over the dishes and rinsing them clean.  I balance the clean dishes carefully and take them back to my apartment, where I leave them in the drying rack and grab another stack of dirty dishes.

Back and forth.  Back and forth.

It is inconvenient, to be sure.

But there is water - running water - even if it is around the corner.

And for that, I am inexpressibly thankful.

- - -

While I'm sure it would best to simply choose to be a thankful person, sometimes it's a lesson we have to learn the hard way.

I took running water for granted until shortly after I arrived in Senegal.  A pipe carrying most of Dakar's water broke and the majority of the city was without running water for several weeks - in some neighborhoods, even longer.

Normal life things like bathing, laundry, cleaning the house, doing the dishes, even flushing the toilets all came to a screeching halt.  We had no idea when the pipe would be fixed or how long it would take for the water to come back on.  I remember my feelings going from irritability at not being able to stay clean (or keep my surroundings clean) to panic.  Washing was optional, but drinking was not - especially in the heat.  What would happen if I didn't have water to drink?

When the water did finally come back on, I cried for joy at the sound.  I never realized how much a trickle of water coming from my faucet would mean, and I hope that for as long as I live, I choose both to be grateful for access to water and for all the other gifts God so generously gives.