They Don’t Know

 

 

The young people don’t know

What we had to do,

Regarding going to the standpipe

They don’t have a clue.

 

Walking 200 yards,

In some cases, a quarter mile

And when you finally got there

Having to wait a while.

 

There was no online

But you had to stand in line

Until people to fill their buckets

And this took time.

 

And you had better hope

The water pressure was high

Because given the lengthy wait

There would be many a sigh.

 

And if an adult came after

You had to give way

For once he or she was adamant,

You had no say.

 

And don’t forget school!

You can’t afford to be late,

A teacher with a certain device

Would be at the gate.

 

 

To be filled was a barrel

And that was a chore,

Back and forth once, twice, thrice

And sometimes more.

 

And bathing twice a day!

This could not happen then,

Not more than one bath a day

Given the problem.

 

Of course, this was great

For some I will not name,

Regarding that once-a-day bath

They made no claim.

 

You may want to ask me

Why this poem all of a sudden,

Well, it was triggered by a situation

That recently happened.

 

 

 

For almost forty-eight hours

The taps could not run

Because of a problem at a reservoir

Named Rising Sun.

 

There was water in store

But obviously not pipe-borne

And people still wanted to operate

As though the water was on.

 

Not one of these persons

Had ever walked to a standpipe

Or they would have known

What this was like.

 

Just turn the tap on

And water invariably came out

However, this time it was different

Thus, injecting some doubt.

 

 

 

Going to the standpipe

Was a great lesson for me

For when there’s no water at the tap

I am still stress free.

 

I know how to conserve

With just one bath a day

And if the problem had persisted

A “cowboy” would be the way.

 

They do not know

And I mean the young people,

They do not have the first clue

To deal with water trouble.

 

Stewart Russell © January 29, 2024