Sub Terra Vita: Chronicle #9: . . .of Water

Sub Terra Vita

By Tim Krenz

July 19, 2015

Chronicle #9: . . .of Water

Of all the mysteries of the Earth, nothing holds more enigmatic power than that of water. The world contains nothing greater in volume than water, except for the land itself. As the myth tells us: “And God said, Let there be a firmament in the midst of the waters, and let it divide the waters from the waters.” (“Book of Genesis,” I:7, KJV, Oxford). As science asserts, all life on earth began in the waters, in primordial sludge, from where simple organisms crawled to land, and grew into forms, one of which declared, “I think; therefore, I am.” All life, in myth and science, begins in water, continues in water, and in the water we may behold the future, everywhere, including perhaps space.

All history, natural or documented, depends on the vital molecule composed of two hydrogen atoms, a basic building block of the universe, and one atom of Oxygen, itself a necessary component of breathable air. The world feeds itself from and with the waters of the earth. Food consumption for safety and palate involve water—mostly adding hydration or removing it.

People cannot live without water. Water makes up over 70% of the human body. Even in politics or economics, one cannot dispute both the mythical, near-magical powers of water, nor the hard sciences that begin describing it. Both the myth and the science remain necessary to our culture and our social relationships. Remove all arguments, for the human species cannot long endure but a day, or two, without water—usable, drinkable water.

In myth, the god flooded the world with rain, to purify the sinfulness of those he created. Lest we forget the power of water, a great tsunami killed in excess of a quarter- humans (est.) in Southeast Asia in 2004. Yes, water can destroy; but, water makes life possible, in the myth and symbolism of religion, and also in the hard science of numbers and equations. The power of water, like that of a God, doesn't care about human politics or economics. Water has its own forceful advocates, called chemistry and physics.

Humanity faces one insurmountable fact. So far, all life known to exist—with 100% discovery—only exists on this planet. And it exists in the only forms we know, only because of water, and a combination of factors for water in other gases, pressure, temperature and orbit. When these conditions vary, so do the perplexing qualities of water, like ice, which holds less density than other solid molecules (hence why ice it floats). Water rests as it weighs on the earth, as the prime sustaining force of the balance of life, like oceans globe worbling with the tides. As the great universal solvent, water measures a pH balance of 7, the stable medium of all acids and bases that, medically, create the organisms of life.

Perhaps, since water serves as a medium, and the essential ingredient for life, the world might come to some common interests to sustain more than just a surviving remnant of the species. Losing access to fresh water means a fight to the finish between the clever and the weak, like desert tribes warring for the ownership of a brackish well. However Created, the earth belongs to all—to live in pursuit of happiness, with the liberty to sustain ourselves. Finding a common purpose in the use and safety of water will allow humanity to enjoy the gifts bestowed by it, or humanity will suffer the sin of its selfishness and indifference, at the instigation of humans too clever for myth or too dumb for numbers.