Children's Story: I Can Learn to Process Drinking Water

Hello, my name is Tiago. I am 8 years old and now in 3rd grade. I like to play after school, but my playing time is limited because in our village someone has confirmed Covid-19. Today, I want to tell you how to process drinking water.

One day my mother said that there would be a children's activity organized by the staff of Wahana Visi Indonesia (WVI). They would give a gift for children, my mother revealed. It turned out that the activities were limited, not everyone could participate because there were no crowds. Fortunately, I was chosen to participate in this activity.

Previously, my mother had participated in WVI activities, and when she came home, she was carrying a box of gifts. My mom said she got a water purifier package. I wonder what it looks like. Then my mother immediately practiced it at home. She took the cloudy well water and put the powder in it.

Extraordinary! I saw my mother stir the water, and it turned out that the water was clear. However, when I tried to drink but it was forbidden. I was sad because I also want to learn to treat drinking water, but I remember that I would also be taught the same knowledge by WVI.

The day of training arrived. I was the first to come. I am very enthusiastic about learning how to turn cloudy water into clean water.

Initially, we were invited to sing, and we were also guided to learn how to do handwashing by singing. It's great! I didn't get this knowledge at school, but I often heard the song on television during the Covid-19 pandemic, so I also memorized it.

But one interesting thing was when I saw WVI's staff preparing cloudy water on the table in front of the audience. I knew we would want to be taught how to treat water! I can't wait to try to process it as my mom did. If I can, I can help my mom comfortably at home.

When WVI's staff asked who dared to come forward to learn how to treat cloudy water so that it could be drunk, I immediately took my hand and stepped forward with confidence. My curiosity made me dare to go forward. My two friends and I came forward and gave it a try.

We were guided on how to process it, which was to put the powder in 10 liters of water then stirred for 5 minutes, and then allowed to settle for 5 minutes. After that, it is filtered into a clean container and left for 20 minutes. After that, it can be drunk immediately.

I was surprised by the result of the water. It became clear. I was glad to learn this thing. It's like magic, and the water is safe to drink, although it has a slight odor similar to clothes bleach.

Thank you for WVI because I can help my mother at home to treat water. Besides that, I also received a bottle of water as a gift, so I could bring my processed water for lunch to school.
 

Written by: Midun, Staff of AIR Project of Area Program Melawi Sintang Wahana Visi Indonesia, based on the beneficiary’s story

Translated by: Aqueta Alexandra Kroons, Intern Wahana Visi Indonesia