Reflections on Water (part one)

There is something healing about water. It's touch, it's sound, its taste, even it's different looks.

The Need

Food we can live without for as long as a month. Without water we are dead in three days. What we call sustenance, the solid food, we crave and feel uncomfortable without in just a few hours even though it's weeks before the need becomes perilous. Our bodies and minds lie to us about our needs. Our stomachs growl and our minds wander to our favorite dishes. We allow ourselves to become a slave to appetite. We crave food long before we need it. Water is different.
Working in the outdoors, I often have to remind people to drink. Dehydration accounts for the majority of discomfort when people spend time outside. We barely notice as our bodies start to dry out. There are signs of the growing need for water but they are subtle and often overlooked. A slight headache is ignored or passed off as "too much sun." Crankiness and fatigue are confused with a bad mood or a bad night's sleep. The are all subtle signs of a body in need, a real growing need for water. If found that it is pretty easy to spot this need in others when you know what to look for. The tricky part is noticing this need in yourself.

I tend to leave my own dryness unobserved and untreated. I just can't see it in myself. I forget that water whispers it's vital importance rather than screaming. It doesn't need to demand attention. If ignored for any amount of time the desperate need for this liquid makes itself obvious. Once noticed and honored I can taste the cool water even before it reaches my lips. Its healing effects are surprisingly immediate as I feel the refreshing, life sustaining, liquid pour down my parched throat. All this in a cup of cold, or even tepid water.
Many of our greatest needs are like water. The things that create the strongest craving are often not the things we need the most. Often we equate volume with importance. The louder or more disruptive something is in our lives the more vital or essential it must be. This is a dangerous assumption. The things we really do need the most usually only give us subtle signs that something is missing. It isn't until there is a breakdown we cannot ignore that we give these important things the proper attention. The rumbles in our tummies immediately send us searching for a yummy snack. The rumbling in our egos, wallets or hearts send us off chasing things that may quiet the craving but not meet the real needs that are subtly whispering for your attention.
The loud rumbles are important things that do need to be tended too but they are far from primary. They are issues but they are far from life threatening. What quiet needs are being drowned out by loud cravings? What rumblings are diverting your attention from the deep needs of your life?
Often these whispering needs can be addressed with something as simple as a cold glass of water. Your soul may be dehydrated. A few hours away from the fast pace of your life may be what you need. An afternoon nap could provide a little moisture. Journal at the beach, an hours quite reflection in a remote mountain meadow or twenty minutes remembering all that you can be thankful for may be that tall, cool cup of water your soul needs.