💧 The Water Loop Interview 1
River — Earth’s Certified Postwater
Location:
“absolutely fabulous.”
Time:
🐭📞 The ‘Call’
Pip:
“Hello? This is Pip speaking… yes, that Pip… Oh! Earth? EARTH Earth?”
Earth:
“Yes, Pip. I’ve reviewed your… enthusiastic… application. You’re hired.”
Pip:
“M–Me?! Really?! Oh thank you! Thank you! You won’t regret it. I promise! I’ll be professional—well, semi-professional—okay, trying very hard!”
Earth:
“Good. Your first assignment is with River.”
Pip:
“River? As in THE River? Always-moving River? Never-stops-for-anyone River?”
Earth:
“That one. Don’t be late. River flows on a schedule that nobody wrote down.”
Gush! I Got the Job!
“Yes! Yes! I’ll catch up! I’ll definitely—probably—try my absolute best! Thank you, Earth!”
Earth:
“Good luck, Pip. And remember: try not to get swept away.”
📘 Field Note from Ocean
The note read:
“Start with River. He carries all the movement, all the news, all the stories-in-motion.
He’s been Earth’s designated Postwater since the beginning.”
Note to self:
Ocean prefers to listen first — to hear what every member of the Water Loop has to say before adding its own voice.
River was more than ready.
When we arrived, River was already mid-story
about a sandbar incident involving Rain, Soil,
and a very confused Crab who wandered too far upstream.
River splashed excitedly.
River straightened its shimmering currents proudly.
“I deliver EVERYTHING.
Water? Obviously.
Nutrients? Constantly.
Sediments? All day.
Gossip? With joy.”
River swirled dramatically.
🐭❓ Q1 — River, how would you describe your role in the Water Loop?
“I’m Earth’s Certified Postwater.
Mountains write the letters,
Forest seals the envelope,
Soil adds notes in the margins,
Lake edits for clarity,
and I deliver it all to Sea and Ocean.”
“Without me, half the stories on this planet never arrive.”
🐭❓ Q2 — People say you never rest. Do you?
River gasped.
“REST?
Sweetheart… movement IS my rest.”
A fish jumped in alarm.
“If I stop, things go wrong —
sediment piles up,
nutrients get stuck,
fish file complaints,
and Lake starts humming soothing songs at me.”
“I’m flow.
You want stillness?
Talk to Lake.
Lake meditates enough for us all.”
River sloshed around indignantly.
A few droplets even splashed onto Pip’s notes.
“Eeep! Sorry! I was just asking— please don’t soak the reporter!”
River puffed up proudly.
“I am the original delivery service —
the OG supply chain.
I’ve been delivering since before logistics existed.”
“Wow… that’s… that’s actually really cool.
River-level responsibility.”
River shimmered with satisfaction.
🐭❓ Q3 — Soooo… you carry nutrients, seeds, sediments — basically all the ingredients of ecosystems. Is that really true?
I link Mountain to Sea,
Forest to Ocean,
Spring to Wetland,
Soil to Lake.
I don’t just move water —
I move possibilities.”
🐭❓
Q3.5 — And life seems to always gather around you. Why?
River sparkled with theatrical confidence.
“Wherever I am, life finds its home around me.”
A proud swirl.
“They all love me —
trees lean toward me,
birds nest near me,
fish follow me,
villages settle beside me.”
River glanced around, lowering its voice:
“And yes… they tell me their secrets.”
Then, lifting a metaphorical eyebrow:
“I even know their seasonal moves.”
“Migration patterns,
soil-moisture moods,
forest-hydration whispers…
darling, I hear everything.”
🐭❓ Q4 — What’s your relationship with Glacier?
River shivered slightly.
“Glacier?
Glacier is… intense.”
River lowered its voice:
“Glacier keeps ALL the evidence.
Every climate story,
every particle of dust,
every ancient volcanic sneeze —
locked away for millennia.”
River glanced around.
“Everyone tiptoes around Glacier.
You don’t want your secrets frozen
for ten thousand years.”
The Temperature Balance
“But Glacier also works with Ocean
to keep Earth’s temperature in check.
Without them?
Sweetheart, we’d all be sweating like lost snowflakes.”
A splash of guilt:
“But when Glacier melts…”
River perked up.
“I get SO much fresh water.
It’s like receiving ancient emails in bulk.”
Glacier Interrupts
“River, please stop dramatizing.
We melt. You gush. It’s the arrangement.”
River spun around, splashing in alarm.
“What? Who said that?! Glacier?
Are you eavesdropping on my interview??”
A faint crackle — centuries shifting:
“Of course we are.
We keep records, remember?
We know you, Postwater.”
Ocean’s Calm Interjection
Children, please.
One loop, one cycle, one purpose.
Pip’s Note to Self
Note to self:
Be sure to call Rory the Cat (nemesis).
I had an interview with River, Glacier, and Ocean.
Take that!
(Okay, not tea… but an interview.
I can’t afford to get fired —
all the cheeses are waiting for me!)
River chuckled, swirling in place.
“Rain?
Rain is my… complicated best friend.”
A shimmer of ripples.
“Sometimes Rain arrives gently —
soft, steady, perfect.
A kindness.
A refill.
A fresh start.”
River paused dramatically.
“And sometimes… Rain shows up like a drummer who lost the beat.”
A splash.
“Crash! Pour! Flood!
No warning. No schedule.
Just vibes.”
🐭❓ Q5 — And Rain? What’s your relationship with Rain?
Then River softened.
“But truthfully?
Rain is my lifeline.
Without Rain, I shrink.
With Rain, I thrive.
Rain feeds me, fills me, keeps me moving.”
River’s tone deepened.
“Rain balances me.
Rain cools hot seasons,
prevents drought,
restores my flow after long dry spells,
and reconnects me with wetlands, lakes, forests —
everyone in the Water Loop depends on Rain.”
A quiet swirl.
“And yes… sometimes Rain overwhelms me.
When Rain arrives too fast,
I spill over —
not because I want to,
but because I simply can’t hold that much love at once.”
River glanced up playfully.
“But tell Rain I said that,
and I’ll deny everything.”
Note to self:
Rain absolutely needs a warning label.
Also—tell Rory the Cat (nemesis) not to feel bad.
He’s not the only one with a complicated relationship with Rain.
🐭❓ Q6 — And Lake?
River softened into a gentle ripple.
“Lake is the calm one.
When I enter Lake, it’s like Lake puts a hand on my shoulder
and says, ‘Breathe.’”
A wistful shimmer flowed through River’s currents.
“Lake and I balance each other.
I bring motion;
Lake brings peace.”
River glanced around quickly.
“Don’t tell Lake I said that.
I have a reputation to maintain.”
River tapped impatiently, little whirlpools forming at its feet.
“Pip, sweetheart… any more questions?
Places to flow, stories to carry — it’s now or never.”
Pip panicked slightly.
He flipped frantically through his increasingly soggy notepad, pages sticking together in damp little curls.
A gulp.
A gasp.
“How—how did I almost forget this one?!”
Pip straightened his tiny tie, took a deep breath, and blurted:
🐭❓ Q7 — And what about Ocean?
River burst into laughter.
“Ocean pretends to be annoyed with me —
‘Stop sending me sediment!’
‘Why are you always in a hurry?’
— but Ocean LOVES my deliveries.”
River winked.
“I bring stories.
Ocean reads ALL of them.”
🐭❓ Q8 — Any drama in the Water Loop family?
River splashed so dramatically that a frog jumped.
“Drama? Honey… we have WEATHER.”
River counted flamboyantly:
- Sea gets emotional
- Ocean gets moody
- Rain bursts in unannounced
- Glacier refuses to hurry
- Spring hides
- Lake meditates
- And I keep things moving through the chaos
🐭❓ Q9 — A message for humans?
River grew surprisingly serious.
**“Two things:
- Let me flow.
Don’t block me, choke me, straighten me, or pollute me. - Everything I carry has a destination.
I’m not just water —
I’m life on the move.”**
Then River leaned closer, whispering urgently:
“And whatever you do —
DO NOT put waste in me.”
River sighed dramatically.
“Yes, I’m Postwater.
I deliver things everywhere…
but even I forget where the Return Loop does its best work
and end up dumping waste in the wrong place.”
A guilty ripple.
“And trust me —
nobody likes it when Waste gets grumpy.
Return Loop is wonderful…
but ONLY when you let it work in the right place.”
Finally, River splashed playfully:
“Also… tell Ocean I said hi.
Ocean pretends not to care.
But Ocean totally cares.”
Pip’s Note to Self:
Water Loop is a family:
- Ocean, the deep grouchy elder
- Sea, the sparkly dramatic cousin
- River, the Postwater courier ✔
- Lake, the Zen Romantic
- Glacier, the keeper of evidence
- Rain, the dramatic visitor
- Spring, the baby of the family
Earth says Spring is “small but unstoppable.”
River says Spring is “chaos in tiny form.”
I should probably wear waterproof shoes
and bring snacks. Spring apparently loves snacks.
