Water… A Love Story

Although I’ve always loved it, I’ve become more and more passionate about water as I grow older. I love to swim in it and have done lots of that in my lifetime – starting in spring-fed Elkhart Lake when I was a toddler through adulthood. On to Sturgeon Bay and Ephraim in Door County in my twenties and thirties, I discovered I love to creep over the beautiful stones and jettison myself into that clear, green water. In mid-life I found joy in the buoyant vastness of Lake Michigan off Atwater Park; weedy dips in Lake Mendota; icy plunges in Lake Superior… wherever I can swim, I do.

I feel in my element in water – I lose my constricted sense of self and feel the embrace of a generous, watery universe. Even the simple act of viewing water calms my monkey-mind. In fact, there seems to be a theory called “Blue Mind,” where water increases the neurotransmitters dopamine, serotonin and oxytocin, scientists write. And, now… getting to a point… since it’s become ever-more evident that our water quality is threatened, I’ve begun finding out what to do to help, rather than simply enjoying it. So grown-up of me, right?

That search has led me to UWM’s School of Freshwater Sciences: an extraordinary local treasure. I don’t know how many people know of it – but more should! It’s the only school of its kind in the U.S., and the third in the world. It’s a great flagship institution of great significance which we can be proud of and should support. It researches how to best safeguard our water and how the world can do the same.

Walking along Lake Park, taking a midnight swim in Lake Manitowish, or watching the ice formations along the winter lakeshore, I thank the heavens that we have this program to help protect the watery treasures this state has been gifted.

UWM’s School of Freshwater Sciences offers a unique opportunity to study complex freshwater ecosystems and resources, weather patterns and climate change. Students will learn how to apply science toward policy to address the environmental challenges our communities face. To learn more about the school, visit their website.