Water: The Source of Life

Under a colander of stars, moonlit waters mirror heaven, revealing the intimacy between heaven and earth. Man is privileged to live on what planetary astrobiology considers one of the Cosmo’s rare, blue water planets. Nevertheless, man knows and cares more about the moon than he does the sanctity of our planet’s waters, the life blood of Earth.
Clearly man only sees what concerns him. Thoreau wrote instead of looking to the sky, look into the placid reflecting salubrious waters for signs and promises of the morrow, referring to water as earth’s eye; looking into which the beholder measures the depth of his own nature.
When the Great Spirit christened earth, the first morning sun rose, nestled within a soft yellow and raspberry sky; the atmosphere, land, water, plants and microbes were pure. If not for H2O on earth 4.5 billion years ago, all life would simply not exist. It seems anomalous calling our beautiful planet ‘earth’, when it’s clearly an ocean star as man and earth’s surface are made up of 85 percent water.
Envisioning water as clean, humans shower, wash clothing and cars, and over-soak manicured ego lawns and gardens with fresh water, yet most earthlings rehydrate their most holy possession, the human temple, with rivers of frou-frou coffees, artificial fruit drinks, and fizzy colas. Assuredly, Earthlings wouldn’t ever shower in Diet Coke nor swim in a rippling stream of Mountain Dew. But then again, nothing surprises me anymore.
Of the thin veneer, very little of earth’s water is pristine. Earth’s water is increasingly unusable; befouled by man-made contaminants. Thoreau would be distressed, sobbing at the willy-nilly use of earth-poisoning herbicides to rid vanity lawns of highly nourishing dandelions, tiptoeing purslane, and constellations of flora and fauna.
Slow progress in protecting water’s integrity is not acceptable, as more than three million people die every year from avoidable water-related disease and more bodies of water such as the Gulf of Mexico are dying. If man rises to meet this challenge, he must altruistically foster respectful approaches that are people-centered and earth-friendly.
Complex life is uncommon in our enigmatic universe. Earth needs loving stewardship and prudent, conscious conservation for future generations to survive. Clean water should not be a luxury, but it could possibly become one. Water is constantly recycled, and we all live downstream from some power plant, manufacturing facility or industrial agriculture complex. But healthy families, communities, environments and economies rely on clean, safe water. To ensure our water resources for the future, we must protect them today. The tragedy in Fukushima illuminates society’s agony of inconvenience when potable water is scarce or tainted.
Remember we are merely guests here; caretakers. Dominion is subjective and abused.