Pray for Rain

I like to think there are people a lot smarter than I running things. Apparently this is not the case at our lake community. We purchased our cabin there when the lake was at a historic low level, not really concerned about the recreational aspect of the water level – we were there to get away – not ski! But now, several years later, I would like to be able to get a boat in the water to fish or at least putter around the lake.

The “powers-that-be” consist of the Water District Manager and the Board of Directors. The manager is paid an outrageous salary and is given the use of a house, a dock and a vehicle (all of this I’ve been told through the gossip grapevine at the Marina Restaurant, so it must be true!). Like I said, I like to think the people in charge are smarter than I, especially when they are paid more than I.

The problems I can see at our lake are numerous. The most obvious is the lack of water. I realize the solution to this is more complicated than turning on the garden hose to fill the lake like I used to do with my children’s plastic swimming pool. Things I’ve heard (again, the Marina gossip-grapevine) are:
1. Ranchers on adjacent properties have dammed streams and creeks which have traditionally flowed to the lake.
2. There is a huge problem with salt cedar trees and other water sucking vegetation.
3. Oil companies are using/buying water to flush wells.
4. The natural water run-off into the lake is blocked by overgrowth of vegetation.
Add to these issues drought and/or near drought conditions for the past few years and the bazillion gallons of water pumped to the surrounding communities every day, and there is a real problem – one which desperately needs to be fixed.

The course of action our water district manager proposes is – Pray for Rain. That is his plan for managing the water resources he was hired to oversee. I believe in the power of prayer as much as the next person – maybe even more, as I saw first hand the results when Daughter #2 was brought back from the brink of death at age three, but I still took her to the doctor. I took her to someone a lot smarter than I when she became ill. I still prayed like a mad woman, but I combined my praying with medical expertise.

If the good folks at my lake community are satisfied with the water district manager’s approach to fixing the problems at the lake, then I’d like to apply for the job. I feel I am at least equally qualified in the prayer department. I can pray for rain with the best of them.