Add Water

As I was working at the castle this week, it struck me how easy my work has been made by the people who make plaster and mortar mixes. As I walked into the upstairs hall today, I took note of  the five different products sitting there waiting their turn to be used. I have plaster, sheetrock joint compound, mortar of two types (one for tile and one for tuck pointing stone), and grout.

To get each to a workable state, I just add water.

It gives me great respect for the craftsmen of yore. They had to know what they were doing in order to get the mixes right. This much sand, this much lime, this much cement to mix mortar. Leave out the lime, mix properly, and you get grout. This much lime or gypsum, cement and sand, viola, plaster. Lime and talcum powder (and other optional stuff) renders joint compound.

Me, I'd have no idea where to go to gather the correct materials, let alone properly mix them to get the desired goop. Probably, the separate components can still be purchased, but I'm pretty sure there aren't many left around who'd have any clue of what the proper mortar recipe might be. We've forgotten how to mix the ingredients to come up with a compound that will hold a wall together instead of crumbling into a pile of sand as soon as it dries.

And then my mind wandered to the everyday miracle elixir we call water; the 'just add water' part. Let the seed of a plant have access to air and water, and it will begin to grow. Add a cup of hot and a cup of cold water to jello mix, and you get a favorite childhood treat of mine. I drink several bottles of water each day, turning on the faucet and refilling my container without conscious thought. On the hot days of summer just past, I'd have not gotten in more than an hour or two of work each day without it. I can tap a few buttons on my phone, turn on the sprinkler system and water the yard - the water will cost me just a few dollars, and it will keep the grass alive. Take it away from most plants for more than a couple of weeks, from people for more than a few days, and life ends.

Where I live, tap water is clear, free of toxins, tasty. I don't have to walk to a well to draw a container full and sloshily carry it home to have something to drink. It's so easy for me to take it for granted - I appreciate the reminder, wherever it came from, that this is a huge blessing, a luxury.

So, let me raise a metaphorical glass to the brilliant people who measured and tested and came up with foolproof recipes for all kinds of things to which we can just add water. They've made my life better, and for this, I am grateful.