Today is World Water Day http://worldwaterday.org.

Swedish poet Gunnar Ekelöf wrote about two water sources, one on the island of Tjörn, one on the island of Mörkö. Summertime, five vessels are carried to the first one: “a celadon cup, an East Indian blue white pelvis, a silver beaker, an old glass of ground gilt, a wide and bulky bowl of tin. They are lowered into the source to get the cold of the water. “You drink from the five vessels, one after another, deliberately, artfully.

To the second source, you do not need to bring any vessel. “An old cup, with a brown crack” hangs in its ear on a branch.

I have just finalized a freshwater project. It included eight islands: two in Greece, Croatia, France and Ireland, respectively. It has gone well, it is a source of sustainability and work satisfaction. Now, lectures are waiting, four new projects are lining up.

In the first source I see water as a culture, as an artifact. It makes me think of how we use water, of wells, pipes, pumps, chlorine, sewers and cycles. Law, technology, cost, supply and demand. Complex, elaborated..

In the second one, I only see the water. The fountainhead of life.