World Day for Water
“Water, water, everywhere
“Water, water, everywhere
Nor any drop to drink.”
- Samuel Taylor Coleridge
Water is our single most treasured natural resource, encompassing more than two thirds of our earth’s surface. It’s vital for all of nature’s flora and fauna—amphibians, birds, fish, invertebrates (snakes and other wiggly critters), insects, reptiles, mammals, plants, trees, and flowers. Water is critical to sustaining life everywhere, and for everything nature provides. We humans enjoy it too, by swimming, sailing, snorkeling, scuba diving, singin’ in the rain, running through a lawn sprinkler or playfully splashing in what we just assume is the cleanest and clearest water we can find. And we love the convenience of turning on the tap and drinking or bathing in it or simply just brushing our teeth.
As human beings, H20 is essential to our life and well-being. Our muscles are 75% water and our blood contains 83% water. If we’re healthy and hydrated, we keep ourselves at peak performance physically and mentally. An ancient Chinese proverb tells us, “When drinking water, think of its source.” And although we know its importance as the finest beverage available, we also selfishly squander it away by unconsciously polluting it in all its forms: rivers, streams, creeks, groundwater, reservoirs, lakes, and oceans. Our collective carelessness threatens our species and animals too by altering water’s drink-ability. As I write, more than 1 billion human beings are hopelessly resorting to drinking and cooking with unsafe water. The end result is that across the planet, just from water-borne diseases or dehydration, nearly 3,900 children die every day. (Imagine what that frightening number means - it’s greater than the populations of many small towns across America!)
In our own country and across the developed world, in our quest for “whiter whites” and in our nutty and newly promoted obsession with the eradication of household bacteria, countless household items we use day after day, contain pollutants that actually endanger our well-being, the public’s health and the environment. Think about it—in home after home, when we clean, we are actually adding toxic chemicals to remove the dirt, and then finish the process by sending it all down the drain and back into the water supply.
There are countless household cleaners and detergents, that, out of necessity, we use day after day. Without even thinking about it, we use commercial products that contain toxins that endanger public health and the environment. By using stuff that’s so much safer, we will collectively create tiny ripples that will become powerful tides of change for the good of the planet, just by using natural alternatives in our home. Try using baking soda, borax, salt, lemon and white vinegar, alone, or experiment with them together in remarkably safe yet effective combinations. Then, just from cleaning, you’ll also become a hands-on global citizen.
Michael De Jong, is the author of “CLEAN: The Humble Art of Zen-Cleansing,” (www.zencleansing.com) produced by Joost Elffers Design and published in 2007 by Sterling Publishers. He lives in Jersey City with his partner, dog and three (now four) goldfish, all of which benefit from his natural cleaning techniques. De Jong, who cleaned apartments in New York City while working as a fine artist, began researching and inventing many of the recipes in “CLEAN” because of his own allergic reactions to commercial cleaning products, and he is continually experimenting with safe, effective and eco-friendly alternatives. Raised in the mid-West by a family that valued the environment and re-cycled before it was fashionable, his quest for non-toxic solutions comes naturally to him. He is currently writing a companion series of “CLEAN” books dealing with such topics as the body, first aid, organization, and food, as well as posting a weekly Blog on www.thedailygreen.com. “CLEAN: The Humble Art of Zen-Cleansing” can be purchased at Barnes & Noble stores across the country or on-line at www.barnesandnoble.com or www.amazon.com. Take the “zen-cleansing” quiz at Latitude U. www.latitudeu.com
Please consider the environment.
- Samuel Taylor Coleridge
Water is our single most treasured natural resource, encompassing more than two thirds of our earth’s surface. It’s vital for all of nature’s flora and fauna—amphibians, birds, fish, invertebrates (snakes and other wiggly critters), insects, reptiles, mammals, plants, trees, and flowers. Water is critical to sustaining life everywhere, and for everything nature provides. We humans enjoy it too, by swimming, sailing, snorkeling, scuba diving, singin’ in the rain, running through a lawn sprinkler or playfully splashing in what we just assume is the cleanest and clearest water we can find. And we love the convenience of turning on the tap and drinking or bathing in it or simply just brushing our teeth.
As human beings, H20 is essential to our life and well-being. Our muscles are 75% water and our blood contains 83% water. If we’re healthy and hydrated, we keep ourselves at peak performance physically and mentally. An ancient Chinese proverb tells us, “When drinking water, think of its source.” And although we know its importance as the finest beverage available, we also selfishly squander it away by unconsciously polluting it in all its forms: rivers, streams, creeks, groundwater, reservoirs, lakes, and oceans. Our collective carelessness threatens our species and animals too by altering water’s drink-ability. As I write, more than 1 billion human beings are hopelessly resorting to drinking and cooking with unsafe water. The end result is that across the planet, just from water-borne diseases or dehydration, nearly 3,900 children die every day. (Imagine what that frightening number means - it’s greater than the populations of many small towns across America!)
In our own country and across the developed world, in our quest for “whiter whites” and in our nutty and newly promoted obsession with the eradication of household bacteria, countless household items we use day after day, contain pollutants that actually endanger our well-being, the public’s health and the environment. Think about it—in home after home, when we clean, we are actually adding toxic chemicals to remove the dirt, and then finish the process by sending it all down the drain and back into the water supply.
There are countless household cleaners and detergents, that, out of necessity, we use day after day. Without even thinking about it, we use commercial products that contain toxins that endanger public health and the environment. By using stuff that’s so much safer, we will collectively create tiny ripples that will become powerful tides of change for the good of the planet, just by using natural alternatives in our home. Try using baking soda, borax, salt, lemon and white vinegar, alone, or experiment with them together in remarkably safe yet effective combinations. Then, just from cleaning, you’ll also become a hands-on global citizen.
Michael De Jong, is the author of “CLEAN: The Humble Art of Zen-Cleansing,” (www.zencleansing.com) produced by Joost Elffers Design and published in 2007 by Sterling Publishers. He lives in Jersey City with his partner, dog and three (now four) goldfish, all of which benefit from his natural cleaning techniques. De Jong, who cleaned apartments in New York City while working as a fine artist, began researching and inventing many of the recipes in “CLEAN” because of his own allergic reactions to commercial cleaning products, and he is continually experimenting with safe, effective and eco-friendly alternatives. Raised in the mid-West by a family that valued the environment and re-cycled before it was fashionable, his quest for non-toxic solutions comes naturally to him. He is currently writing a companion series of “CLEAN” books dealing with such topics as the body, first aid, organization, and food, as well as posting a weekly Blog on www.thedailygreen.com. “CLEAN: The Humble Art of Zen-Cleansing” can be purchased at Barnes & Noble stores across the country or on-line at www.barnesandnoble.com or www.amazon.com. Take the “zen-cleansing” quiz at Latitude U. www.latitudeu.com
Please consider the environment.
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