Mayim

Last weekend I was about to board a plane when I decide to buy a magazine in an airport store. As I was glancing through the mountain of options, the cover of a magazine called Fast Company caught my eye. I don’t usually stray from my favorite two or three magazines (especially in the airport where they are so expensive), but the cover of Fast Company had a picture of Matt Damon on the cover that stated “Matt Damon And His Global War For Water.” I was intrigued because although I have heard people say often that the wars of the next century will be fought over water, I really know very little about this subject area. After reading about Water.Org, an organization Damon helped create and sustain, I had a desire to become more educated about this escalating environmental crisis.

Tonight, while thinking about this post and having water on my mind, I suddenly began to sing the words “mayim mayim mayim Hey mayim b’sason hey hey hey hey mayim mayim…” As I had flashbacks to elementary school and camp, singing and dancing to one of my favorite Israeli dance songs, I decided to look up the translation which has an opening verse that states “Joyfully shall you draw water from the fountains of triumph.” It was amazing how much this song represented the work that Water.Org is doing in helping to build wells and water systems in areas of the world without access to clean water. I would not be doing the organization justice if I attempted to convey all of the work they do, but I highly encourage you to visit http://water.org/solutions in order to learn more about the organization and their community based approach to spreading access to drinkable water around the world. They do not simply go into a community and install a well, but instead they work with local partners, involve residents in the process to assure community ownership, and provide education so that the water systems can be maintained and remain a source of clean water.

I know that many of my posts express a certain degree of frustration regarding both the state of the environment and the politics that seem to be a roadblock in implementing global solutions. However, this organization is a great example of the hope that remains when individuals come together in order to address a problem. Matt Damon and Gary White (the other co-founder) come from two different backgrounds. In fact they each had their own organization dealing with water before meeting and deciding to merge. They put egos aside, giving up both the name of their organization and complete control, in order to make a difference in an area of the environmental world that often gets neglected but has enormous impacts on the day to day lives of every human being. Again, I do not have the space here ,but I encourage you to read some facts about the water crisis here: http://water.org/learn-about-the-water-crisis/facts/

I have posted the words to Mayim Mayim below. It is a song of great joy, but I hope while you read it you also begin to think of the sorrow and anguish that so many feel (over one billion) because they do not have access to clean water. I know that the people who read this post most likely are already active in the environmental world and have many causes they are active in, however, I urge you to learn more about the water crisis because from what I have been reading over the past few days, unfortunately the little I knew before my plane trip continues to remain true: the wars of the next century will be fought over water. Let us all pray that one day the song "Mayim" and others like it that celebrate the life sustaining gift of water, only bring joy to those who sing it.

Note: (There is actually a documentary that aired about the fight between Alabama, Georgia, and Florida over water, which have all had serious drought issues over the past few years, so the issue is not just isolated to developing countries: http://www.waterwar.org/about2.html).

MAYIM, MAYIM

Ushavtem Mayim (Besason)

Ushavtem mayim b'sason
mimainei hayeshua .
Ushavtem mayim b'sason
mimainei hayeshua

Chorus:
Mayim – Mayim – Mayim – Mayim
Hey, mayim b'sason
Mayim – Mayim – Mayim – Mayim
Hey, mayim b'sason

Hey, hey, hey, hey
Mayim – Mayim
Mayim – Mayim
Mayim – Mayim – b'sason

Mayim – Mayim
Mayim – Mayim
Mayim – Mayim – b'sason

WATER, WATER

Joyfully shall you draw water
From the fountains of triumph
Joyfully shall you draw water
From the fountains of triumph

Chorus:
Water – water – water – water
Hey, water in joy
Water – water – water – water
Hey, water in joy

Hey, hey, hey, hey
Water – water
Water – water
Water – water – in joy

Water – water
Water – water
Water – water – in joy

http://www.hebrewsongs.com/?song=mayimmayim

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