Water is gift from God that we may take from granted. Water is a necessity of life, and as far back as I can recall, I have been able to go to the kitchen sink and instantly have this necessity at my fingertips. As a young child, that water was pumped out of our well and into our house. My mother called it “mineral water.” Over time, it turned all our white clothes and linens orange. I don’t remember the year, but during my childhood a huge water tower was erected in Rainsville and water lines were run out to residents. My family and many others were able to tap into what many in those days referred to as “city water.” That meant fresh water on demand and no more orange-colored undergarments or clothes!
On our recent trip to Spain, we visited a couple of communities and palaces that had “city water” long before Rainsville, or Alabama, or even the United States had ever been founded or even thought about. The first place we visited with such a water system was in Granada. Olive oil is known as the “liquid gold” of Spain. With more than 300 million olive trees in the country, Spain is said to produce more than half of the olive oil in the world. We certainly consumed our fair share of that amazing oil while there. To say that olive oil flows freely through Spain is certainly true, but so does fresh water, and it has done so for hundreds of years.
In Granada, we visited the ancient palace, fortress and grounds there known as Alhambra. Alhambra is a UNESCO World Heritage site. The American author Washington Irving had visited there a few years earlier than us, in 1828, to be exact. Four years later, he wrote, “The Alhambra; Tales and Sketches of the Moors and Spaniards.” I’m certainly no Washington Irving, but I felt compelled to at least write a column about this unbelievable place/palace.
Building there began in the 13th century, and some of the Islamic-built structures have been preserved to this day and may still be toured. Granada was the last capital of the Moors in Spain, before it fell to the Catholic Monarchs in 1492. We spent an entire morning touring there with a local historical expert. The complex, with its buildings, miles of walls and 30 towers, sprawls across 26 acres of beautiful hillsides with gardens and orchards.
At the heart of the community is the Aqueduct of Alhambra. Fresh water has flowed through that aqueduct from the Darro River for over 800 years. The system used gravity to move the water with no pumps. It supplies water for the Court of the Lions Fountain in the courtyard. The fountain, which was built in the 14th century, features 12 sculpted lions arranged in a circle. Water shoots from their mouths, which tells you what hour of the day it is. Beginning at midnight, the first lion shoots water. Another is added each hour until noon, when they start over. When we saw them, all 12 were spewing water. That told us it was lunchtime and time for us to leave.
Water is a requirement of any place that is a dwelling place, but getting water in every place is not always easy. Jesus had an encounter with a Samaritan woman who had to walk into the city well in her hometown of Sychar to draw her water. Jesus told her about living water that He could give her that would satisfy forever. He is the aqueduct for that living water!
Bill King can be reached at bkpreach@yahoo.com.
