The Miracles of Plumbing

It used to be that one had to go to the river to fetch water, or at least to a well, and even then, one had to be cautious with the water to ensure that it was clean and pure. But now, we can get clean, fresh water at the turn of a knob, from the comfort of our homes.

It used to be that one would have to heat one's water by setting or hanging the water over a fire (after having made the fire with gathered firewood) until the water warmed up to something close to the desired temperature. But now, we can get hot water about as easily as we can get cold water, and we can get water of whatever temperature we want by turning the knobs precisely.

It used to be that waste would have to be buried or left in deep, foul-smelling pits. But now, we have fresh water in such abundance that we can use it to flush our waste down pipes and far away, to places where the waste can be properly dealt with.

Even setting aside the modern miracles that our ancestors could never have dreamed of (electricity, cell phones, the internet, etc), we have miracles aplenty from plumbing alone. Our access to clean, fresh water of any desired temperature is nothing short of miraculous, and we should not take that miracle for granted. As I understand it, Texas has struggled with water quite a bit recently. I sympathize with them, but I count myself lucky that I can't empathize with them. Even while camping, I've continuously enjoyed many of the blessings of plumbing.

I've never had to live without the miracles of plumbing, and I pray that I never have to.