Our water has flowed so freely for so long and we have used it so lavishly, that now in this time of an intense water crisis when we are being asked to cut our individual usage by 50 percent, we do not know what to do. So here are some “common sense” guidelines that, with a little effort, we can easily follow.

1. Use every bit of water twice if you can. Don’t let water run down the sink. Collect it and reuse it.

2. Wash salad greens and vegetables in a bowl. Reuse that water for house plants.

3. When you change the dog’s water dish, give the water to a plant.

4. Switch to “biodegradable, non-toxic” soaps and cleansers so that you can easily reuse the water for plants without harming them. Shaklee and Amway have been making them for years. Look for other brands, too.

5. Let the dishwasher take a vacation, and go back to doing dishes by hand. You’ll save water and electricity. Use one basin for washing and one for rinsing. Definitely save the rinse water.

6. All water from a vase of flowers can be reused for house plants. (They love it; the water is full of nutrients.)

7. When you brush your teeth or wash your face, again put a bowl in the sink and collect that water for outdoor plants.

8. I keep a large garbage can or two by the kitchen door and one by my bathroom door, and any water that I do not need to use at the moment, I store-dishwater, bath water, rinse water, etc.

9. Get a dam for your toilet, or make one from a double plastic bag filled with water and tied securely. In Santa Barbara, where they have been dealing with a water shortage for a long time, they have a saying, “If it’s yellow, let it mellow. If it’s brown, flush it down.” In other words, you don’t have to flush every time you use the toilet.

10. Install a “soap saver” shower head. Wet down your body, press the knob to turn off the water while you soap up, then rinse off quickly.

11. Get a flat tub stopper for the shower stall, and collect the water. Scoop it into a pail and use it for plants.

12. It may not be what you are used to, but you can easily bathe in three inches of water. Collect the bath water and reuse it in the garden. Even if you don’t have a garden yourself, you could take a bucket of water outside every day and perhaps save a tree in your apartment complex. Adopt a tree somewhere, and water it regularly with water that you would otherwise let go down the drain.

13. Make sure you have a full load before you use the washer.

14. Have a tank attached to your rain gutters so that you can collect that water when it does rain.

15. Look into “gray water,” water that you recycle. Have a plumber adjust your pipes so that kitchen, bath, and washing machine water all flow into the garden.

16. Enlist the children. Have a contest in your family. See who can save the most water in one day.

17. Mulch the plants you do water in the garden so that they can live on less.

Still, with all of these methods, some of the garden may have to go. Remember, it is only a temporary measure. When the rains come again, we can replant.

Also remember that in many places on the planet, they still carry water in a bucket from a central well for all household needs. As difficult as it may be to cut back now, be grateful for the convenient ways that water flows into your life. Bless the water with love each time you use it. Be thankful for all that you have.