An event at church last weekend got me thinking about water.  I listened as those who discovered and dealt with a waterline leak described the aqueous scenario.  Each of us listening related with our own plumbing mishap stories.  It was amazing how far the water had traveled by the time the leak was discovered.  The water was virtually everywhere.  Everyone was thankful the leak was found, and repaired, by church members coming to work at Glory Grille on Saturday, and not encountered two days later when the office staff came to work on Monday

The incident made me think of the quote “Water, water, everywhere, And all the boards did shrink; Water, water, everywhere, Nor any drop to drink” from the poem “The Rime of the Ancient Mariner” published in 1798 by English poet Samuel Taylor Coleridge.  If you’re into heavy metal music, the English band Iron Maiden has a nearly fourteen minute jam titled “Rime of the Ancient Mariner” on their “Powerslave” album.

The residents of California apparently share the Ancient Mariner’s water problem; the entire Pacific Ocean on their doorstep, but not enough to drink.  To remedy this, California draws enough water from the Colorado River annually to cover the entire state of New Jersey with one foot of water.  That’s a lot of water.  I know I can cover the entire kitchen floor with water just by tapping my dog’s 16 ounce water bowl with my toe.  Spilling a 12 ounce cup of coffee can pretty much completely cover the dining room table as well.  Why doesn’t the same thing happen when I’m trying to paint the house?  “The can says this gallon should cover 400 square feet….right.”

Have you heard the rumor that turkeys will look up at the sky during a rainstorm and drown?  This just isn’t true.  However, rescue school taught me a person can drown in a half an inch of water.  I know that’s right – I almost drowned from inhaling a mouthful of water while body surfing at Huntington Beach, CA. when I was 16.  I didn’t know I also nearly became a victim of “Secondary” or “Dry Drowning”.  This can happen if a person inhales a couple of ounces of water or survives a near drowning experience.  The lungs get infected and can’t get oxygen to the rest of the body.  Did you know you can also drown by drinking too much water?  That’s called water intoxication or hyper hydration.

Why is it that water seldom stays where we try to put it or does what we want it to do?   If we try to contain it, water evaporates.  If we evaporate water, it condenses and turns back into water.  If we push it up, it falls back down.  If we mix it with things, the water eventually somehow separates itself from whatever we mix it with.  We chill water and it warms up again by itself.  If we warm water it will quickly cool down.  Water can cut a canyon through stone and it can dissolve metal.  Our bodies are made up of about 60% water, but if we try to inhale the stuff it almost kills us!   Jesus changed water into wine, but we have yet to learn how to keep it from leaking out of pipes.  Given the persistence of water, I’d advise we stay close to a plumber and keep our lifejackets and paper towels handy!

© 2014 Curt Savage Media