Little emergencies, little adventures

Eastern Massachusetts is under a boil-water order for at least a few days due to a major leak. We're washing our hands from pitchers, carting in bottled water by the delugeload, and realizing all the little ways we use running water in everyday life. I am okay with all this, and for that I credit children's literature.

When the little emergencies of a northeastern childhood sprung up--the thunderstorms, the blizzards, the minor injuries, the auto breakdowns--part of me always wanted them to get a little worse, a little more exciting. (I'm sure there was a line I wouldn't have wanted them to cross, but I was luckily secure enough in being taken care of that I never had to figure out where that line was.) I wanted to walk miles and miles to safety like the Tillermans in Homecoming. I wanted to bathe in a museum fountain like Claudia and Jamie in From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler. I wanted to be in charge of the younger kids stranded somewhere with me like the babysitters in Snowbound. I probably also wanted school to be cancelled, but hey, that happens in a lot of books, too.

Of course, I hope this water situation doesn't last too long. My heart goes out to anyone dealing with a serious health problem or with anything else that makes these circumstances harder to handle. But for now... since I can't do anything about it anyway... bring on the adventure!