SAVE WATER
By: Elma Saskya, S.Pd
On a hot afternoon, the two brothers were having fun playing marbles in their yard.
“Jojo, it's really hot today. It looks like playing in the water is better than here. How about we just play with water in the bathroom?” Invite Jeje to his little brother.
"Let's go in now; Jojo wants to, bro." The two of them went in and put their marbles in the tin jar they usually use.
***
"Wow, the water in our tubs and buckets is all full, Jo. It's going to be fun!" Jeje exclaimed happily and immediately poured water on his brother’s body repeatedly.
His younger brother also didn't want to give in. He went back to pouring water on his brother's body with enthusiasm.
"Ha ha. My brother got all his clothes wet. You lost." Said his younger brother, laughing happily.
They went back to pouring water on each other, laughing together, until they realized that the water in the tubs and buckets that were previously full was now completely empty.
"What are you doing? Why is the water all empty like this?” Their mother screamed when she had just returned from the market.
"Earlier, Jeje invited Jojo to play in the water, Mom. So we played each other. Look! Jeje's shirt and trousers were all wet; Jeje lost. Weekkk!” Jojo teased his brother.
“You lost too! See, your shirt and pants are also wet. Ha ha." Jeje burst into laughter.
“Jojo, Jeje. Your game has wasted clean water. Take a look now; everything is gone. This is called waste! Apart from wasting water, you also waste electricity. So you have to refill everything. You have to learn to save water. Remember that there are still many people out there who need clean water. They need to go up and down mountains, waiting for the rain to come, to get clean water. Meanwhile, you can only waste water!" Their mother scolded and advised them both of the importance of conserving water.
"But Mom, all we have to do is press this button, and the water will come straight out of here." Jeje answered, still annoyed, while pointing at their water pump switch.
“Still, it's called waste, Jeje. We should be able to use this water for bathing, cooking, etc. Now the water can only be wasted.” She answered his son.
Jeje, with his frown face, could only remain silent and immediately pressed the water pump switch to refill the empty tub and bucket. However, after pressing it repeatedly, their water pump wouldn't turn on either.
It turned out that after checking, there was a power outage in the area of their house. His face turned worried. He was afraid that his mother would scold him again; he was even afraid that there would be no water supply for his family to bathe, urinate, or defecate.
"What now? The electricity went out, right? How will we shower, urinate, and defecate later? We no longer have water supplies. This is the consequence if we do not save water. We can make things difficult for ourselves." Said his mother.
Jojo and Jeje felt increasingly guilty; they looked down and fell silent. "Sorry, Mom," they said in unison.
"Okay, now you guys change clothes. You'll catch a cold if you keep going like that. After that, the two of you help Mother draw water from the well. Understand?" His mother's orders were firm.
***
They immediately nodded obediently and changed their clothes with new ones. The three of them were now at the well behind their house, drawing water to fill the empty buckets from earlier and taking it to the bathroom to put it in the water tank.
It turned out that repeatedly carrying buckets full of water made Jojo and Jeje feel tired. They just found out that it felt very heavy, even though the distance between the well and the bathroom was not that far. Especially if they have to go up and down mountains to get clean water.
“Mom, from now on, we promise to only use water as needed. We will save water usage, Mom.” Jojo said, and Jeje was determined to fulfill his promise to his mother.
“It's good that you understand. Mom is happy to hear that. Always remember the lessons you learned today, and keep fulfilling your promises." His mother smiled as she gently stroked the tops of her two sons' heads.
***
The message we can take from this story is that water is a source of life that we must conserve. Water is one of the needs of living creatures.
Without water, living things can die. Water is so important that we must respect the water, especially the clean water, that we have.
Perhaps without realizing it, we often don't respect water by wasting it, for example, when bathing, washing, or even drinking.
Remember, not everyone has easy access to clean water. Then, there are also areas where it is difficult to get water. That is why we must always be wise when using water. All for the sake of future generations, for the sake of future children and grandchildren.
"If we don't learn to preserve and save it, we will all be like fish without water, and you know what that will lead to!"
NB: This story was created for third-grade elementary and middle school children.
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