one billion reasons
yet the faucet drips
d
r
i
p
drips
one life at a time leaks
dry thru drain teeth
what keeps you
awake
one billion reasons
looking for a drink
Today for Poetics at d'Verse Poets Pub, Sheila Moore gives us the poetry prompt 'Water.' One billion people, that is one in eight people in the world do not have access to clean drinking water. Water is life. How do we fix this faucet of lives fading?
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93 comments:
I love how you bring our attention to needs such as this in a beautiful verse....bravo to you and all at dverse , y'all rock!
This will truly keep me awake now, sometimes I wish we could pipe water to places like this, if they can do it with oil...oh yah, there's no money in water.
ugh - this hits hard - i second david... thanks for bringing our attention to things we tend to forget so easily... soooo good reading your words again bri
Interesting use of the word WATER!
As the not-so-proud owner of a drippy faucet, I feel like a jerk now ... what is an irritation to me (that stupid dripping noise keeps me from sleeping sometimes) is something that some people on this planet would kill for.
Thanks, as always, for giving your readers perspective. Amazing :-)
wow you did water earlier and now again. they describe how different the taps can be.
This one meshes nicely with Gay's. We take way too much for granted here, and waste more than many people are able to use in a day. Good one.
one life at a time leaks
dry thru drain teeth
Arresting image of inequity, suffering, and loss.
Powerful poem to make us think and be thankful.
David
we take so many things for granted. I just watched Cast Away (Tom Hanks) and this reminds me of how he kept saying after he spent 4 years on a deserted island, "Ice cubes! I can't believe I have icecubes in my glass." Thanks, for playing Brian.
Brian- Love the drippy faucet, but I also read much more into this... alcoholism. Am I way off?
You don't know its importance, until you don't have. And then there are a billion reasons why, Good one, Brian.
I said years ago water is going to be the next biggest commodity after oil. It's something we ALL need and, countries without it will have to beg, steal or borrow from those who do have it in abundance.
We have taken it for granted for such a long time yet, I've felt for a long time that soon, wars will be fought for it and, those without such as is happening now, will be left to fall by the wayside to those who can afford it and have it on tap.
More and more of the world is turning to desert, you just have to see Australia, Africa, and even some parts of the USA are being drastically turned to desert all, affected by lack of water.
We have fast become a world of have and have nots and water is going to be worth its weight as the new blue, liquid gold.
A heartfelt write Brian.
sleek and hard hitting..it made me thirsty too, im such a wet blanket.
Thanks Brian
a meaningful take on the prompt with with a hint on (lack) social responsibility.
i have seen poverty such as this scene first hand so it hits me hard as i try to forget what half of the world do not have ~ clean drinking water ~
amazing as always ~
You're making me feel guilty about my write...but this is huge! In the case of developing nations, we could do so much for so little, to provide clean drinking water for so many...yet we are content to waste, waste, waste...isn't it great to be considered so far above these nations who don't even have the option of wasting...you know how I like to rant and rage, but I will save that for my own space...what happens when we have contaminated and wasted to the point where we no longer are able to? Just a thought...write on Poet!
The pictures coming from Somalia are beyond heartbreaking. War plus drought=death, famine, cruelty. What price power? We need a new day, and possibly a superhero. Great piece here, Brian, so pictorial and poetic. I love how you do your work!
Gay
Sadly it's very very true
I read they even have new technology to help too
But unless they can pay up the dough
It's never going to show
Or course they can't
So the big bad first nations treat them like an ant
...ever sobering...and while I do my best to judiciously use water, I have to admit I feel quite powerless in the face of it all.
I have no idea. I've got my hands full with my own life.
This is so sad. I think so many of us forget about the tragedy of many who feel the pain of thirst on a constant basis - we who have merely to walk over to our faucets and let the water run.
It is heartbreaking to think of the need of so many...but I am glad for this reminder.
Every drop counts. Well-penned.
We do take for granted that which others need so desparately.
This is an eye opener to something we so often take for granted. Water is life and many are running out but many are also working to help bring clean drinking water to those without. For this, I am thankful.
Yes, it seems impossible that water is a luxury for some when we are so wasteful. It kind of leaves me sick to my stomach, especially at a time when there is so much bickering in our nation. That's a great pic, too.
Stumbling to the kitchen in the middle of the night... looking for a drink, but I have to wake up first... :-)
BRIAN:
"...one life at a time leaks
dry thru drain teeth..."
You sure know how to put me/us in the pictures you paint. I had to get a bottle of water, reading this
--then prayed for those who have never SEEN a "bottle of water".
dverse is the the greatest. I shall be a reader who enjoys three times a week.
PEACE!
lack of clean water for ANYone on this planet is unacceptable! especially when there are several inexpensive ways to help immediately while more long-term solutions are put into place. a cause i care deeply about. stunning poem, Brian!
sad...this has been on my mind this week...the reports from Africa just devastating.
You've beautifully brought something to our attention that needs fixing. It's hard to wrap your mind around those kind of numbers.
The inequality in the world is so appalling -- and the rich get richer.
Like how you push burn (about playing in the water) up to the dry images here where there is not enough to go around.
and while I know this is serious and all, I just can't get the image of you in heels staring at the glow of a computer screen while eating Lima beans in a little cafe out of my mind. teehee. :) I want a copy of that song & cover dude!!
After reading this I'm just very, very thankful for water.
So many dying from a lack of it!
It's very sad!
Thank you Brain for this verse!
You are awesome!
Enjoy the rest of your weekend.
Very quiet at my house, too quiet.
Margie :)
You have an empathetic soul, thank you for using your words to remind us of our brothers and sisters in need.
Another example of how thoughtless and wasteful we can sometimes be--you said it loud and clear!
nice drips of that precious gift to life...bkm
I am always so shocked to hear about how drinking water is not available to everyone. It's so sad, it's something we all take for granted in my country!!
Flows perfectly!
Brian, wow a reminder of what we take for granted. enjoy your weekend.
A rep of ACWW (Associated Country Women of the World) once did a demonstration, complete with model of a weary woman bearing a water pitcher on her head. The caption was.... 'where did you get your water from today?' Your words brought it back to me how lucky we are to have water on tap.
We do take things for granted here, it's such a precious resource & one we use so lavishly. A heartfelt & good write..
So far, the sea has survived everything. Once the earth completely froze over, killing 95 percent of all life. Deep in the sea, life endured. Human existence performs a similar wallop, fishing out entire species, polluting the waters. I suspect it will endure beyond our waste and thirst. Not so good for us, maybe, but I applaud the sea. And yet, as we see from planets like Mars, the sea is not necessarily a permanence. And fresh water, that strangely transformed element which alone we can drink, is even less so. Dunno if we have the resources and compassion to evolve a humane water policy our the thirsty kin -- we sure aren't sharing the other wealths--but it takes a certain damage to the soul to simply watch these folks wither. Thanks for the reminder that many cups are empty. - Brendan
There is so much money in the world, enough to fix everything except conscience...I'm never thirsty and I sleep
My little view of the world is suffering severe drought conditions, crops so dry they are turning to dust, the bottom of lakes and ponds looking much like the image you chose to enhance this impactful poem with a heavy sprinkling of fish bones dried into the earth.
When I wake in the night and hear someone running sprinklers on their lawn under the sly cover of darkness in full disrespect of watering bans, I wonder at the thoughtlessness and selfishness of others.
See what your poem did to me? Now I'm on a soapbox without any water! Excellent, moving and hopefully someone will think.
Beth
A powerful poem with such a meaningful message.
A great read. Thank you.
This immediately reminded me of an organization i support, charitywater.org..
water is a gift for so many..
great awareness piece!!
Water has become a huge issue right here in New Mexico. Several towns are running out of clean drinking water!!! This drought has become extreme! Only .50" of rain since January!!! Yikes!
Clean drinking water is definitely a world wide issue as you say. And we need to come together to find a solution. Thanks Brian
Hugs
SueAnn
Put a monetary value on water, sell it on the commodities market and you will soon enough see it all over the world, wells will be dug and great Lakes water will be cleaned and shipped...why...profit. There is no profit (monetary) in getting clean water to people.
Looking for a drink of water or looking for a drink of life, we must keep looking. Your words wet my appetite for more of your poems.
So sad. So, so sad.
Waste not, want not... This is the other side of the coin. We have to learn to conserve in more ways than one!
this woman makes me hopeful
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E5ZPGeF2ics
Nice.
Water.
The stuff of life, without we certainly parish. Your take on using it metaphorically does not go unappreciated. I may not always comment (how many ways can you say "great work"?) but I always appreciate seeing life through your pen.
So many in search for just the basic essential, you express it so simply and so powerfully Brian, another wonderful piece. ~ Rose
Brilliant, Brian, my hats off to you. What an amazing way to to touch the chord and awaken us to the reality of life.
interesting and thoughtful brian..
Someone is Special
made me thirsty reading it ....thank you
ohhh, this is sad...it's good to look outside our own little worlds...we take too much for granted. great words, as always. happy sunday to you - :)
Well said. Am grateful I live where I do and there is no severe drought.
Puts it all into perspective, doesn't it? We take so much for granted.
Good write, Brian. We take so much for granted.
Potable eater us a huge issue as we continue to pollute and consume. Fear post.
I don't think what's dripping from my faucet would end up in Africa if I changed the washer. At least not soon enough to make a difference.
A powerful reminder, Brian.
Thanks.
=)
It's truly horrific. And it's scary because if we weren't treating our water with such chemical baths, we wouldn't have any clean drinking water either.
Great poem. I was wondering what the stat was on this as I wrote my poem ... 1 in 8! That's a LOT!
We forget and take for grated how important a bottle water can be.
Water, water everywhere but....
Yes, this really hits home, Brian... that vertical drip pulses your message beautifully..
The numbers about the lack of water never cease to amaze me. I'm typing this, listening to the water run in my house. A shower upstairs, the lawn being watered outside, the dishwasher, the washing machine. All luxuries...
good write. It looks like the figure has gotten worse since the last time I've checked, that's quite unfortunate, thanks for posting the figures, it is something that people need to hear/read. Again, great job of making the most out of each word, and love the projection in this piece
very punchy and topical. Not a word wasted and the 'drain' image is great. Also like your
d
r
i
p
You have such a terrific style. It's fearless and bright and surprising all at the same time. This piece was especially powerful both on the visual and audio levels.
Cheers,
Casey
Sometimes poetry delights me with play and power of words. Other times it does the most miraculous thing: it simply vanishes into action. Whatchagonnado? Here is a good article.
http://www.theatlantic.com/infocus/2011/07/famine-in-east-africa/100115/
This is why I work for Spring of Hope International.
Short, clever, and quite powerful!
Very powerful, Brian.
During the Haitii disaster I donated to Water Missions International. I do not usually support religion-based organizations, but the bio for this one and its rating (4 stars) at Charity Navigator impressed me. Their continuing communications are great updates. There are many groups working with the water issue; Water Missions is a one of the best.
Stark reality in words and image. Very effective, Brian.
Chug-a-Lug.....
Very good message delivered so simply and eloquently.
Wow! So true. I was watching on the news how women were walking miles to get to food. One woman gave birth on her journey. How we have leftovers uneaten and people are starving.
In my grant neighbourhood their water cut off over a year ago, they have to walk on foot to the nearest tap which is far, they use big buckets and wheelbarrows, that's South Africa for you.. I love your poetry, it keeps getting more awesome
Nicely done!
I do so agree! The drought in East Africa is dire and we all need to help. Water is indeed a very precious resource.
There is no easy answer to this question. On one hand we need to work to ease the struggles of those who are here, but more water will bring more life. This planet can only support so much before it implodes. This is the good topic for a discussion over beer and then a trip to the post office to mail a check to support the right cause.
Amen. it drives me CRAZY when people allow a faucet to drip. I also cringe when people waste food.
Oh, an eco-poem! I love it.
If only there are no seasons then parched throats in dry areas are non-existence.We must consider ourselves most fortunate. You highlighted it perfectly!
Hi! Brian...
I have to agree with what some Of or all your previous commenter have said about things we take for granted...
...Which others are longing for whether it's water, food, shoes, etc,etc,etc...
Thanks, for sharing and I like how you used the word drip simple use, but quite effective too!
deedee ;-D
Such an uneven distribution in this world.
We people with water on tap will never really know just how precious water really is ... it is something we truly do take for granted. Thanks for the reminder Brian.
Great reminder to us, to save and to use water wisely...
very poignant, chokingly pointing to our responsibility while there's currently a world disaster going on in the East of Africa
thats a pic i have seen for real, daily struggle for water is un-thinkable. well written.
There are some agencies that go to third world countries and provide clean drinking water through purification systems. Check online for Water Missions International at
http://www.watermissions.org/
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