Dams drying up

Who would ever have thought that we would come to a day when turning on a tap was a guilty pleasure? That lugging two 10 litre buckets of rainwater up 13 stairs twice a day would replace weights at the gym? That the garden would have secret stashes of rainwater drawn from a 5000 litre jojo tank in 5 litre bottles hiding behind every bush?  The change in weather patterns over Cape Town has seen our dams dry up at an alarming rate, and a lifetime of expecting water to come out of a tap appears to be drawing to a close.
We should have been educated in water conservation for at least the last 20 years, but too late for tears. Grey water systems, boreholes, filtration plants and how many times a week we shower have now become the most common subject of conversation, outstripping the much-asked question of when do we think it will rain again? We are possibly talking more about the weather than the British, and that's saying something. Rather sad, really.
The tourist influx is now dreaded rather than welcomed, and we residents are casting jealous eyes at those who fly in for a week and wallow in a bath, then fly home again. Suspicious glances wander over shiny cars - did they use grey water for that? A damp patch in the road causes panic, with multiple Facebook posts exhorting the City Council to 'fix that leak yesterday already!' and calculators are out to see how many days' worth of 87 litres allowances have spilled into the gutters.
Now is the time of competitions to see how little water we can use to shower. Badge of honour if you shower with a friend! Some of the stories are ghoulish and make one get seriously worried about hygiene! The lack of flushing in a water-borne sewage system keeps me awake at night wondering when the big explosion will come!
Perhaps this is another lesson sent to us about caring for our environment and not wasting life-giving resources. Of all things, water is Life. Will we be let off the hook with some surprise floods? Another chance to get it right this time?

This is what grey water does for the jasmine!