The medical world says that...
about 55% of a human body is made up of water.
and Scientists state that...
about 70% of the plant earth is covered in water.
Well, this Peace Corps Volunteer is here to tell you...
about 75%of my day/time revolves around...
you guessed it...water.
I come from the land of America. The land of every house has a spigot. In the kitchen. In the bathrooms. Outdoors. If you want to drink, you can go to these spigots. Or the refridgerator. Or even IN the fridge to grab a BOTTLE if the tap "just doesn't taste right." I come from...ice is a must, not a luxury. Drink 8 glasses a day to be healthy! Shower--daily. Bathe to de-stress. Leave the tap running while you brush your teeth. Swim in the summer, even in the winter! Let's face it...water isn't something we think about, but it's something that is abundant daily. We need it, we use it morning, noon, and night. And I love it.
I'll admit. I shower in the morning. Bathe at night. I drink store bought bottles--like 4 a day. I let it run when I do dishes. When my dad used to complain about the toilet running, I was like, "yeah, what's the problem?" Water wasn't a concern. It just was.
I've never been more aware of water than I have become in the past year. Before coming to Senegal, my friend recommended a filtered water bottle. It would be so handy! I could always have clean water! You never knew when it would be useful. Already I was concered about the water situation. We all know that many of the world's poorest countries don't have access to clean water. I didn't know what to expect, but dang it, I was going to be prepared.
When I arrived for training, it was filtered water only. On weekends when I would be at my house, without access to the training center water, I'd fill up and take it home to save in my room. I had to learn to shower out of my bucket, and how much did I need?? When I washed my clothes, was I wasting too much? And we only had one spigot in the house. Was everyone watching and keeping tabs on how much water I used??
During our med sessions it was all about: DON'T DRINK THE WATER! But DRINK A LOT OF WATER! Don't get dehydrated! And never, ever get in the river! In other words, I was petrified of the water. Who KNEW what I was going to catch. I was NOT going to be sick. I would be a healthy, safe volunteer.
And then there was demyst. My four day "vacation" with a "real" volunteer. Her water situation: a well. A well that was pretty far away. And twice a day she had to walk there, pull water, put the basin on her head, and carry it back to her room. Being that we were new, and this was all "fun and exciting!", Kate and I wanted to pull; wanted to attempt walking with it on our heads without spilling it. But THAT was fun for four days, would I really be able to do it for two years?
And then I got to site.
And I began to change. My water obsession took a turn. Most obviously was that I moved to the desert. Where there is no water. And there hadn't been water for the past 9 months. And it's temperature was over 100 everyday. My obsession turned to, do I have water with me at all times. And everyone thought it was so funny that the new, foriegn girl was ALWAYS carrying water. (Must be Evian, or cold water. She's too good for OUR water.) And I'd politely decline water from peoples "loondes," which is a clay pot to keep it cool. I can't tell you how long that lasted, but I could only drink water that was HOT for so long. So probably after a week or two, I was all over the unfiltered water. (I mean, the nurse in my town said the water was treated yearly...giddy up!) In fact, I didn't filter my water for about the first year being in Senegal (never got sick, I should note!). It was a matter of have a cool drink of water and take your chances, or drink hot water and be miserable. And I will say, I am not alone in this. Most volunteers will sacrifice health for a cool drink. There is nothing better than being able to buy frozen bissap (a juice here--aka senegalese popsicle) or ice. I'd say a major concern of my day is how and where I am going to buy ice. How to get it home without melting, and without my family knowing. I mean, at my house (not all houses in my town, but for mine) ice is a luxury. If we have an extra 25cfa (like 5 cents) or a guest, we'll buy it. I, on the other hand, have that luxury, and don't want everyone to know that there are days that I buy 2 ices-one in the morning, one in the evening. And maybe treat myself to those popsicles, too! I feel frivolous. I feel schemey. I feel refreshed.
Then there's the "robinet", as we call it. The spigot. There is one in my family's compound, and (alhumdiliah!) it works. Occasionally it is slow, and maybe twice it actually got cut off, but I'm lucky. Every morning I fill my bucket. Shower. Then I save the lasting water so that I can shower again in the evening. Again, I feel like I need to be sneaky for some bizaare reason. Like I am a water hoarding freak that has the need to shower twice a day. I will say, I'm not like some of my other friends. Ones that rely on a solar system. No sun, no water. Usually not a problem, but last week, when there was a HUGE double wedding in the village and the thousands of guests needed to drink, people needed to shower, the lunch bowls needed to be cleaned...the water...ran...o...u...t...and my friend and I were left rationing her drinking water, while everyone else was going to the river. The river...right now is more muddy than watery, and there was NO WAY I was going to drink it. Although when brought a bucket of it, while Kate opted for wet wipes, I did bathe with the muddy water (I mean, people pay big money for that stuff in the sates, right?!) Or my other friend, who has to pull water daily at her well, so therefore she opts to bathe in the river, muddy or not. Pulling water, my friends...it's harder then it sounds, and to have to do it daily, multiple times, carry it on your head...it really puts how much water you use in perspective.
Being in the Fouta, we tell ourselves that we have one saving grace...the river. We ARE the Senegalese Riviera. We may not have green. We may not have trees. But we DO have the river. (Most of us.) To this day, it creeps me out. As I said, we were told (repeatedly) do NOT get in. There is schistosomiasis. I was bound and determined to avoid the river. But, the river is social. The river is useful. The river is free water. The river is cool. That is where everyone in my town goes to wash laundry, dishes, bathe, swim, etc. I do all these things at my home. With robinet water. Water that costs money. And this is upsurd to them. Why in the world would I not go to the river?? It's so refreshing. And it has been, like the 3 times that I have been in. My friends have convinced me to go. My nearest neighbor, Kate, is a little fish. You can't keep her out of the river, same for many other volunteers. Again, it's a matter of staying cool and sane or gettin a little schisto.
My current water obsession is the rain. Ah, the glorious rain. Water from above. Cold, cold water. It's wonderful. It's short lived, but there's so much of it. And it is not to be wasted. Two days ago we had a storm that outdid any other storm I have experienced here. It started and just didn't stop. Rains usually last an hour, this was a rainy day. And it was in buckets. literally. Everyone was grabbing buckets, kettles, bowls, etc. They were washing things, bathing, and saving all they could with the water. They were all over the water situation. And it was coming in from all angles. You had to wade through my compound, and in fact, that is the downfall to the rain. The aftermath. The muddy, lake effect it gives the town. I have to reroute where I go in order to avoid the puddles. The water just sits in spots--throughout the entire rainy season. But have no worries, even this is not wasted. Go to the dieri, the side without the river, and you will find women bathing, doing laundry, and cleaning things in the puddle water.
Yes, water is always put to good use. Sometimes we (voulnteers) laugh at the silly things we do. Stand in a pan to catch our dirty bathing water, just to "flush" a clogged toilet. Save your laundry water to clean a floor. Wash your dishes with a cup of water, and then use that water to water a tree. Wash your hands in a dirty bowl, and then clean the bowl. "You still use water to brush your teeth?!" AH, yes...we have become quite innovative with our water. We have come to relalize no matter if filtered, unfiltered, robinet, well, river, rain, ice, or hot...water IS the most precious of commodities, and I can't get enough.