Selflessness of Water

BY MICHAEL GEYER

I bet that most people have never thought about describing water as being selfless. After all, it’s just a compound element or a form of matter… right? It doesn’t interact with us, walk the children to school, or carry on a conversation. So how could it be expressed as selfless?

Water is truly one of the greatest blessings to humankind and is also a great example of selflessness. It’s an element that serves almost every living creature on the face of the planet in more ways than one and expects nothing in return. It’s like an eternal touch of love that reaches out to everyone and everything in existence without hesitation. Its daily uses are abundant and necessary for life on many different levels. Yet, despite its presence since the beginning of time there isn’t and hasn’t been a single person across the globe that knows everything there is to know about it. An element so powerful it can wipe out an entire city with ease and still provide for the most delicate life. Its state of existence in the different environments it serves varies quite drastically. Each environment it serves has a well thought out recipe of ingredients specifically meant for the life around it and within it.

If only water could talk… I could imagine the stories it could tell. It’s the one element that keeps providing us all life, century after century, and without this one element our life would cease to exist. Exceptional Water Systems continuously strives to better understand the different characteristics of water every day. We seek to provide that clean, safe, and healthy water environment for all that pursue it. We utilize nature's most powerful sanitizer and oxidizer on the planet to treat water, and that element is ozone. We also utilize some of nature's most abundant gasses like carbon dioxide to manage the pH in the water. By utilizing these natural elements, we create an environment not only great for people, but for animals and vegetation as well.

If you would like to learn more about our systems and how they can help you, please feel free to contact us at www.exwsystems.com or call us at 480-694-4709. Exceptional Water Systems… continuously thriving to provide Healthy Water for Humanity!

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18 Bright Ideas

How proper lighting can benefit your home and well-being

HOME

20 Eco-Chic Shacks

Follow these three companies to make your home stylish and Earth-friendly

22 Smart Thermostats

Save energy and money this summer

SAVOR

38 Recipes

Merkin Vineyards Scottsdale’s Heirloom

Tomato Bruschetta & The Larder + The Delta’s Grilled Kanpachi

40 Pulling Down Clouds

An inside look at the Tohono O’odham Nation’s sacred saguaro fruit harvest

44 A (Green) Star is Born

The Michelin Guide’s newest distinction

48 Get Cooking!

These outdoor cooking gadgets will be the star of your next backyard gathering

TECHNOLOGY

50 No Cords, No Gas — No Problem! These battery powered yard tools have plenty of power

Contributors

WWhen I was a young girl, my bedroom was my own personal hideaway, which I used to retreat and recharge — even then I understood what it meant to have a space to call my own. As an adult, my home has always been my respite from the outside world. Even when it’s filled with the frenetic pace of nightly activities like homework, family dinner prep, and the occasional need to meet a looming work deadline, I have ownership over my space, and I get to say what happens there for me. The sense of security that comes with that awareness is something every human deserves.

My husband and I each owned our own homes prior to dating, and those spaces — although inhabited at different times together — always belonged more to one of us than the other. When we finally bought our current house together last summer, we recognized the opportunity to create a home that is equally ours. The process of defining spaces where we can each find comfort, solitude, and peace — my stepson included — has been an exercise not so much in determining physical boundaries out loud but feeling out the rooms and places that make us feel safe and secure and nurture an energetic peace.

As our home was purchased from another loving family, it’s also taken time to adjust to a place where six other humans lived out their daily lives. Little by little, the energy from the previous family has faded, truly making way for the three of us and our two little fur kids to settle into this new abode of ours. Small changes like lighting fixtures, cabinet knobs, paint, and a new kitchen backsplash have also helped to make our new house feel more like “us.” But when I look around at the projects that are still on our list, I know how much more it’s going to take to make it feel complete.

That’s why I’m so happy to present this summer’s home and garden issue. I’ll be using the advice, tips, and tricks included in these pages to keep working on our home. From implementing different lighting to create a peaceful environment (page 18), to working on our new backyard oasis with sustainable ideas inspired by architect Jason Boyer (page 25), I’ve got some big ideas brewing. We might even consider investing in a new outdoor kitchen gadget (page 48) in advance of all of the poolside entertaining we’ll be doing this summer.

While you’re perusing these pages, make sure to take a deeper look at our far-out piece on Earthship homes (page 28) and — for an especially feel-good story — pay special attention to our highlight on Grand Canyon University’s partnership with Habitat for Humanity (page 12).

Whether your upcoming plans include a family vacation, solo escape to somewhere remote, barbecues with friends, or a whole lotta home improvement projects like mine, may happiness be bestowed upon your doorstep all summer long.

Thanks for reading,

Shelby Tuttle

Managing Editor

Cassie Hepler is the owner and publisher of lifestyle and travel blog ExplorewithCassie.com, as well as a multimedia journalist, photographer and professional model and actress based in Phoenix, Ariz. She also works with TikTok as part of its #learnontiktok educational fund. Learn more about her at www.cassiehepler.com.

Michelle Talsma Everson is a freelance journalist who believes that communication is an art, where the right messaging can tell impactful, vivid stories. Using that art, she has built a career as a journalism and public relations professional in the Valley. Her work has been seen in magazines, newspapers, and online outlets across Arizona and nationally for over a decade. Learn more about her writing at www.mteverson.com.

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