The cost of a thing, is the amount of what I will call 'life', which is required to be exchanged for it, immediately or in the long run

Today is the World Water Day. It's the International observance of World Water Day is an initiative that grew out of the 1992 United Nations Conference on Environment and Development (UNCED) in Rio de Janeiro. It's a day to remember crisis happenings under the same sky. The problem of water in Africa is bigger than malaria or AIDS epidemic.

It's the perfect day to remember how much we consume and how we can NOT JUST consume but conserve also. There is a question of what can the world provide for us, but there is a deeper question for me in terms of stewardship, how can we take care of the world God has given to us. If the Lord's prayer mentioned about "Your Will be done in heaven and on earth", how can we make our earth heaven as well.

In times of great inequalities, am I so naive to think that there is hope? That the one who have more could extend generosity while realizing the scarcity so that the one who have less could have more?

Here are some facts to remember:

• People have been using potentially harmful sources of water out of necessity that kills 3900 children everyday.
• 4 of every 10 people in the world do not have access to even a simple pit latrine
• 2 in 10 have no source of safe drinking-water
  

In Nigeria, an entire family consume the same amount of water as one person in the US flush the toilet one time. The children need to take water from the well three hours away from their house to get a bucket of unclean water.

Just because there are abundance amongst us, it doesn't mean that the problems disappear.

But in New York City, over 25 years, small changes that was done by each citizen had reduced the amount of water consumption. The small changes are putting water meter, automatically shut off sink, lower water consumption on washing machine. This is happening in the city that has the highest energy consumption in the world. And what it has accomplished gave me a glimpse of hope that "living green" isn't a naive idea after all. Of course there are many other examples such as Seattle that recycled everything, or Portland with its gas-saving transportation system, or even Curitiba (Brazil) that think more advance than many of the cities in the US in terms of public participation. But today is a chance for me to remember the blessings from God that we have water, clean water, ready to drink water, and to remind me not to waste it, when I am brushing my teeth, flush the toilet, washing dishes/clothes, and showering (try to get down five minutes is enough...).