I’m proud to be sharing a percentage of my royalties from WATER CAN BE… with WaterAid, a fantastic water charity. And I’m grateful to Hallie Tamez, Associate Director of Development for WaterAid America, for sharing her personal story about water here on my blog.
Photo: WaterAid
Why do we have to eat this?
Beans, rice and water…again? Every Wednesday, my siblings and I sat around the dinner table whining and choking down our weekly meal of beans, rice and water. At the time, it seemed like cruel and unusual punishment. After all, why in the world would parents serve such a seemingly meager and unexciting meal week after week when they could afford not to?
Photo: WaterAid
In hindsight, I realize my parents were actually pretty extraordinary. They believed in living experiences, not just talking about them. And in making us ?eat it,? they were actually making a point: millions of people around the world struggle with access to the basic necessities of food and water, and it’s not something to be taken for granted. My sense of a larger world emerged around the dinner table, guided by parents who were determined that my seven siblings and I would not grow up in a bubble of ignorance, blind to social responsibility.
I will be forever grateful to them for giving me that weekly taste of a stark reality, and a belief in my capacity to do something. So I set out to change the world and I became a teacher. And here’s the really amazing part: over 30 years later, I now realize that I have changed the world in ways only teachers can. By exposing kids to the world, encouraging them to explore, ask questions and dream big I set the fuse and empowered the next generation to light the flame!
Photo: WaterAid/Anna Kari
I didn’t make my students eat rice and beans, but I did tap into my own desire to understand how and why things are the way they are, in order to nurture that same desire for curiosity and action in children of all ages.
My greatest revelation was recognizing that “teaching” is really learning, and learning comes from living experiences, not just talking about them. (Thanks again, Mom and Dad!) We all have the capacity to be both teachers and learners – it’s a simple concept that can create change in the world.
Today I’m part of a hard-working team at WaterAid, a leading international non-profit organization working with local partners to deliver safe water, toilets, and hygiene education to impoverished and vulnerable people living in many of the world’s poorest countries. This is an enormously important mission with implications for generations to come. I am still teaching and learning, just not in a classroom.
Here’s what I’ve learned:
? 748 million people in the world do not have access to safe water.
? Over 500,000 children die every year from diarrhea caused by unsafe water and poor sanitation – that’s more than 1,400 children a day.
? Women in Africa and Asia often carry water on their heads weighing over 40lbs, the weight of an American four-year-old child.
Photo: WaterAid/Eva-Lotta Jansson
? Children in developing countries spend far too many hours every day searching for water, keeping them from the joys of free play and attending school.
Photo: WaterAid/Mani Karmacharya
Here’s what I know:
? Kids are curious.
? Kids have empathy for other kids.
? Kids feel hope and see opportunity.
? Kids want to get involved.
Photo: WaterAid
Here’s what you can do:
Help kids live the wonders and necessity of clean water for everyone, everywhere.
1. Immerse kids in the world of water ? read Water Can Be… By Laura Purdie Salas
2. Stay informed: Sign up to receive WaterAid’s e-news updates
3. Activity: What happens when you flush?
4. Activity: Pump it up!
5. Activity: Do you have bad water habits?
What happens tomorrow can be determined by today. Why not offer kids the experience and tools to ignite their their power to influence a changing world. Living the realities of life without clean water and toilets is unfathomable to most of us, but young children can learn what it means to have clean water, what happens when you don’t, and why it’s critical for everyone in a happy and healthy world.
–Hallie Tamez, Associate Director of Development for WaterAid America
Thanks, Hallie, for this blog post and also for the great work you are doing. And, educators, if you’d like a short video you can share with your students to raise awareness about this issue, here’s one I made.
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[iframe width=”560″ height=”315″ src=”//www.youtube.com/embed/fSCj31deFqM’rel=0″ frameborder=”0″ allowfullscreen]
And if you can’t access YouTube, here it is on my site.
I know there are a million important causes out there, but I hope you’ll agree clean water is a big one! Please help spread the word.
I am in awe of your generosity. I already loved your book, this just makes me want to go out and buy up all the copies at my bookstore!
Thank you, Juliana. It’s not a large percentage, but I’m trying to just focus on doing what I AM able to do to help. And the more I learn about WaterAid, the more I hope to be able to make generous donations!
I am in awe of your generosity. I already loved your book, this just makes me want to go out and buy up all the copies at my bookstore!
Thank you, Juliana. It’s not a large percentage, but I’m trying to just focus on doing what I AM able to do to help. And the more I learn about WaterAid, the more I hope to be able to make generous donations!
Wow, this interview is so inspirational. Thank you to Hallie and to Laura!
I am so glad you found it inspirational Carol! Thanks for sharing your reaction. I have been inspired and seek to inspire others every day.
Thanks, Carol. I agree–Hallie’s efforts to change the world are inspiring! And a great reminder that most of us are working to change the world in some way, big or small:>)
Wow, this interview is so inspirational. Thank you to Hallie and to Laura!
I am so glad you found it inspirational Carol! Thanks for sharing your reaction. I have been inspired and seek to inspire others every day.
Thanks, Carol. I agree–Hallie’s efforts to change the world are inspiring! And a great reminder that most of us are working to change the world in some way, big or small:>)
While eating beans and rice and water when I was a kid wouldn’t have occurred to me as a punishment, I think it’s neat when parents try to instill mindfulness. I remember learning how to boil water for backpacking and realizing that anybody who didn’t have water coming out of a tap would need to do this… what a different world, lacking in “fast” food or convenient anything.
I’m interested that water is on the menu for giving this month; I recently learned about Waterbridge, which gives book and water, too.
I do, too, Tanita. So much more meaningful than just, “There are starving kids, so finish your green beans.” Books and water–lovely. That looks like a great program. I’m going to have to explore the site more thoroughly! Thanks:>)
While eating beans and rice and water when I was a kid wouldn’t have occurred to me as a punishment, I think it’s neat when parents try to instill mindfulness. I remember learning how to boil water for backpacking and realizing that anybody who didn’t have water coming out of a tap would need to do this… what a different world, lacking in “fast” food or convenient anything.
I’m interested that water is on the menu for giving this month; I recently learned about Waterbridge, which gives book and water, too.
I do, too, Tanita. So much more meaningful than just, “There are starving kids, so finish your green beans.” Books and water–lovely. That looks like a great program. I’m going to have to explore the site more thoroughly! Thanks:>)
This is terrific, Laura. All through the years, I’ve had students come to the table, but according to the world’s people’s experience in eating. In percentages, only a few of a class of 22 received a full meal. Many received beans and rice, some only rice, and a small glass of water. Well, you get the picture. We do try to share the information with students, and classrooms work to learn and hold fundraisers to help. I’ll share this with the teachers. They will want to know! Thanks to Hallie for sharing her story, and to you for your sharing from Water Can Be.
I love that activity, Linda. I remember doing that at a church lock-in when I was a kid, and it made a big impression, so I did it when I was a youth group leader while in college. It’s amazing how disgruntled you feel, watching others eat their fill for no other reason than chance (just like I chanced to be born in a country/community of plentiful food and clean water). I love that you do this with your students!
What a great activity Linda – nice variation! I love sharing my stories and hearing from others. So glad you enjoyed it and found it relevant to you. One of the things I love about my work with WaterAid now is the importance of sharing the stories of those whose lives have been transformed by access to safe, clean water and toilets. It is really remarkable!
This is terrific, Laura. All through the years, I’ve had students come to the table, but according to the world’s people’s experience in eating. In percentages, only a few of a class of 22 received a full meal. Many received beans and rice, some only rice, and a small glass of water. Well, you get the picture. We do try to share the information with students, and classrooms work to learn and hold fundraisers to help. I’ll share this with the teachers. They will want to know! Thanks to Hallie for sharing her story, and to you for your sharing from Water Can Be.
I love that activity, Linda. I remember doing that at a church lock-in when I was a kid, and it made a big impression, so I did it when I was a youth group leader while in college. It’s amazing how disgruntled you feel, watching others eat their fill for no other reason than chance (just like I chanced to be born in a country/community of plentiful food and clean water). I love that you do this with your students!
What a great activity Linda – nice variation! I love sharing my stories and hearing from others. So glad you enjoyed it and found it relevant to you. One of the things I love about my work with WaterAid now is the importance of sharing the stories of those whose lives have been transformed by access to safe, clean water and toilets. It is really remarkable!