Roughly six weeks ago, we had more water than we knew what to do with. So much water, it invaded in places it should’ve have. Our neighbors homes. The streets of downtown. Even filling the bowl at LP Field. And then, just like that, it was gone. And by gone, I mean we had no water. From that point on, suddenly the one thing we all take the most for granted was a luxury. We as a city were faced with something no one ever thought possible: the complete loss of running water.

So, we did what we had to do. We stopped flushing toilets. We coined the phrases “flood hair” and “flood legs”. We didn’t wash anything: our cars, our clothes, and barely ourselves. And slowly but surely, those extreme measures paid off, and we were able to ensure that our city that had just suffered so much wouldn’t have to suffer a further hardship.

Now, we have water again. My hair is clean, my clothes are clean, and my car is actually clean. But there is one thing that we cannot forget: so much of the world lives in the manner that we just did, and even worse. Here’s just a few mind blowing facts:

• Nearly one billion people – that’s 1 in every 8 of us – lack access to safe water.

• Every day, the global water and sanitation crisis claims the lives of as many children under five to equal that of 16 jumbo jets crashing.

• Over 2.5 billion people lack access to adequate sanitation – with nearly half that number (1.2 billion) – living without sanitation facilities at all.

It’s something that no one really thinks about, but a major issue for so many people around the world. An organization called Ryan’s Well was brought to my attention after I watched a documentary called Water Wars, and I was extremely touched by the dedication of a young boy to making sure that folks in Africa had access to clean drinking water. I know we’re all tapped out on the giving front helping take care of our neighbors, but consider giving even just $5 to Ryan’s Well Foundation to help those around the world get access to clean drinking water. Even when we barely had our own, it was so much more than so many have.