What would you say you cannot live without? Top of my list is water. Wind is next on the list. Strange as that may sound. Life on a homestead, especially following a long drought, teaches you the value of water. I'm embarrassed to admit it was not even a consideration before our self-sufficient journey began. The trauma of suffering really teaches us both endurance as well as gratitude of life's basics. Last week the overflowing valley dam was opened for another flood irrigation. Once again we have regular lei water (flood irrigation) watering our thirsty lands. The blessing of the water is more precious than gold. For the last couple days we have braved the heat to run down to the fields and dunk ourselves in the flooding channels. In this heat we could stay in the flow all day!
Recently I wrote my celebratory post about the valley dam that is full and overflowing for the first time since Jan 2014. My cup runneth over has taken on a new and literal meaning for those of us who survived the long drought.
FarmerBuckaroo is on the water committee and has been managing the repair of the valley irrigation channels since winter. The last month the strong flow of the flooding dam is testing all those months and months of work and excavating.
We, of course, tested the water in a very personal way. We went to swim in it! The cool water has refreshed both land and people.
Despite the wonderful sight and musical sound of flowing water the evidence of what did not survive the drought is everywhere. It will take long to clear.
But the joy of new life brightens the gloomy rememberance - as does the joyful squeals of splashing children.
The roots of the trees are a promise of survival. They make unusual steps into the water. How deep the roots run. And how thirstily they are now able to drink of the life giving water. Like the tree roots the Buckaroo roots are long and run very deep. They will also form steps for others to step into the flow of the life giving Water! May others soon drink of the waters. And more than that! Dance in the refreshing flow.
I think we are 70% water like the earth. Don't know if there is some link for this to be so.
So, water it is.
Source: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0476986/#:~:text=%22Ugly%20Bags%20of%20Mostly%20Water,ugly%20bags%20of%20mostly%20water%22.
Oh my word! What a horrible quote! Hilarious. But horrible. I don't remember that part but thanks for sharing
You're welcome.
Hahaha dude you're cracking me up!
Have a wet summer season in Australia has been absolutely wonderful, I don't care how much rain falls I will never complain. I pray that your little waterway never stops flowing. Regards Angie
Thanks Angie. I see there has been rain in many other dry areas. What a blessing for you too!
Water most definitely is worth more than gold, you survived and have planned ahead with irrigation systems to assist in rural living conditions and farming, well done!
!LUV
@joanstewart(6/10) gave you LUV.
Thank you for sharing our joy Joan!
It is wonderful to see dams filling up around the country, some areas still affected by drought needing more rain, it has been a good year!
It is sad that there are still areas that are dry but on the whole we've been blessed with rain nationally
Hopefully people have managed to put in systems to save some water too!
Liquid Gold! Well done and I couldn't be happier to see some rainfall on South Africa. It has been so long, I am surprised that it made such a great comeback.
Nature is so forgiving in so many ways, it taught you a lesson and it is forgiving enough to go green when given the smallest amount of water. Enjoy the sound of children squealing! Such a joyful noise.
Thankyou @ewkaw and @qurator
What a blessing!! Right in the middle of summer, I am sure it's hot down there right now...
You guys enjoy the splish splash!!
Hot? I wish it was just hot! We're in a heat wave. We're just about melting. I keep popping the poor meal worms in the freezer. We're having to kraal the livestock and feed them bales - which is something we only do in winter. It's way too dangerous to allow them to free range in this heat.
Shit! Did you guys got hit by the locust wave also?
Only a few stragglers ....
You gotta cook some haha, then in a Portuguese prego roll with some hot sauce
Excuse me while I throw up all over the keyboard
The water looks great, it seems that we had good rains everywhere in SA!!
Where in the Karoo are you staying??
Somewhere between Oudtshoorn, Laingsburg and Montagu. Tussen erens en nerens
Congrats on the return of water to your fields. I'd say that without water, there's nothing else on anyone's list that's going to make a damn's worth of difference.
Enjoy the flow!
Cheers!
Exactly! Loved the pun - damn difference of the dam water