Water

Last night smelled of rain heavy on the air as we walked toward the pond.
It reminded me of getting things ready for the rain in Lui South Sudan.
How rain means we can fill our buckets outside the huts, just so we can bathe.
Rain means we have more collected from the roof set up of huge plastic
Cisterns, so our hosts might not have to carry the water from the village
To the compound on their heads. It means we have tea, boiling water for
Food, to clean our clothes, and more to heat and wash with. You begin
To realize the precious flow as you watch people carry their daily usage
From one of the many wells. You realize our connectedness to life-giving
Water and why it meant so much to the woman at the well, because she
Is not just asking to refresh her thirst, but she is asking to be relieved of
The burden of walking to and from the well. Water has become a precious
Thing, not to be just idly wasted, not to be disconnected from in distance
Because I don't carry it on my head. Water reminds me of what a work it is
To be connected to God, to the true source of life and that is never taken lightly.