The tap had been dripping for over a week. Until the day came when I “simply” left the house, headed towards the vendor stalls beneath the bridge at 100 and Boyeros, visited two or three stands, compared prices, and chose this tap from one of them. The ½” x ½” flexible hose that goes with it I bought from a different seller who had them cheaper, and between the tap and the hose I spent 2700 pesos, which at an exchange rate of 375 pesos to 1 USD comes out to around 7 dollars.
But that’s not really the point. I said at the beginning “simply,” when in fact it wasn’t that simple at all. First I had to wait until I had enough money for this unexpected expense. I could’ve hired someone to do it, but that would’ve been yet another cost, depriving myself of things that, at the time, I felt were more important. And truth be told, this is no time to be throwing money away, especially when you know how to do things yourself. So I set about removing the washbasin from the wall, found a neighbourhood plumber to help remove the screws from the old tap using a size 10 spanner—because I didn’t have that tool in my kit. And since I had to disconnect the siphon anyway, I took the opportunity to scrub it clean with bleach and detergent… a siphon is the most disgusting thing in the world. But mine came out looking brand new.
When I got back from under the bridge with the new tap, installing it was a breeze. Nothing to write home about—and I did it all by myself, well, almost all of it. I have to admit I needed the plumber’s help to loosen those pesky screws.
Now comes a little reflection… I know you were expecting it.
The tap was dripping, and I put up with it, even though I was resolute in my mind that I would replace it. I could’ve removed it and sealed the pipe to stop the dripping, couldn’t I?, while I waited until the conditions were right to buy what I needed. But again—I endured it. I was annoyed, and I still endured it. I placed a container underneath to catch the water that trickled down from the basin to the floor. That bucket would fill up every so often, and I’d use the water for something useful, which of course did nothing to lessen my irritation.
Relationships can be rather similar. There are people who enter your life and are like that dripping tap. They’re beyond fixing, or still have much to learn, or simply lack the ability to observe. And regarding the latter, it may well be they don’t even care enough to stop and take notice. They don’t realise that someone capable of changing a bathroom tap practically on her own doesn't have to put up with the impertinence of the drip. And that person—me—has evidence every day that freedom, with or without company, is the most precious thing one can have.
Now I know that the dripping is unnecessary, and it constantly threatens to overflow whatever container you place beneath it. Or perhaps it’s simply energy and life wasted on something with no true purpose. Relationships—like water—should flow through the best possible channel: one that allows transparency, good energy, freedom, and growth.
I don't know if it was right to publish this post here... but I think that through my words also flows a minimalist idea of life and relationships, as well as that constant learning, which can happen even from everyday challenges.
😉
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