Some countries are "brown". Everything is desolate, the landscape is parched and little grows. Think Ethiopia, Sudan and countries like that. All the images we see from there are "brown" because of how little rain they get and how dry it is.

we are in the middle of one of the worst droughts that we have experienced in recent history. Yet,
Israel is far from "brown". It is "green" with trees and grass and flourishing with buildings, pools, ponds,, fountains, malls, etc. Water seemingly everywhere.

Which makes it unusual and interesting how excited we get at the slightest rainfall. It rained for a few minutes yesterday and we are all excited. The kids started screaming in excitement when the first drops fell and spent the next few minutes scampering in the rain.

You'd think from our reactions that we were living in a "brown" country, when we are living in a "green" one. I guess we all appreciate the water, as we have begun cutting back on our usage - shutting the water while brushing teeth, taking short showers, minimizing watering gardens, etc. plus the high prices were paying in water taxes now for going over the allotment, and even a few drops of rain so early in the winter season gives us optimism that it will be a rainy winter and we will be able to return to our normal wasteful lifestyles...

And on that note, I wonder if once they approved the high water prices, if it rains a lot and we get back to a situation where we have plenty of water, will they remove the taxes and put the prices back down to normal or will they leave them in place regardless??