A Little Appreciation

Dear Government,

The recent water crisis here in Eastern Massachusetts has made me realize how much I've been taking you for granted. All day long every day I turn on my taps and clean, fresh water flows out of them, and I never even consider how hard you work to make that happen for me. Yes, I have to pay for that water, but it's a small, fair sum for not having to load up barrels in a wagon and go down to the town spigot and fill them up once a day. Or for not having to feed my children river water that yaks pooped in. Or for not having to wait in line at Costco for an hour and half to shell out mega bucks for bottled water only to be told that they're sold out. Try again tomorrow for some life-giving water!

And now that a terrible accident has happened and my supply of clean drinking water has unfortunately been shut off for a few days, you have a backup system already in place to provide me and my family with water that is at least clean enough to bathe in and boil, if not for drinking straight out of the faucet. Water that flushes the toilets and washes the clothes. Hey, that's better than nothing. Better than having Mike put his Boy Scout survivalist skills to use digging a latrine in the backyard. And your people are spending their precious sunny Sunday afternoon working hard to fix the problem while I do a crossword puzzle and watch Tinkerbell with my kids. Your guys are scrambling out there in the hot sun to make sure I don't have to give Whole Foods a small fortune for just enough bottled water to brush my teeth. And you're keeping me constantly updated on your progress! Way to go, Gov!

And that's what I love about you Government, ya big lug, toiling away behind the scenes to make my life so comfy and safe that I forget what it is you do exactly. You with your potable drinking water and your stop lights and your state universities and your recycling centers and your public libraries and your fire fighters. Government, you're the best!

Love,
A Taxpayer