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Illinois Valley News, Cave Junction, OR Wednesday, December 24, 2003
It’s a dazzling time, this luminous holiday celebration
season of Christmas, Hanukah and New Year’s. Bright
colored lights, elegant candles, sparkling decorations, reli-
gious observances, hopefully heartfelt gifts and greetings
combine for a most special period of the year.
There’s magic in the air, and it contains traces of peace
and good will. People gain new perspectives on living and
loving during these special days. Sharing and caring seem
to come easier.
For some folks it’s a good news/bad news time.
They’re pleased with the trappings of the season, but be-
come stressed, worn out, irritable and just plain goofy from
preparing for and then “doing their duty” during the holi-
day spell. The good news for them is that “it’ll soon be
over” and they can collapse and regroup for the first part of
the new year. Not my idea of a good time, dreading the
“drudgery” of what is a joyous scene.
I’ve been guilty of the Frantic Seasonal Syndrome, but
not during the past few years. Of late, we’ve tried to be
conscious of the observances, but avoid overdoing: eating
and drinking to excess, spending too much on gifts of an
impressively fake nature, and trying to please everyone (an
impossible task). Instead we’ve striven to focus on family
and close friends with the idea of “Good things come in
small packages.” Which reminds me of my eighth-grade
teacher, a Catholic nun, who would add to that comment:
“And so does poison.”
For me, Christmas has always been a dazzling time. I
have yesteryear black-and-white photos of myself as a
young boy (some will remember those old-style shots with
scalloped edges) standing by our decorated tree in a duplex
on Hyatt Street in the Linda Vista section of San Diego.
The tree is drenched in tinsel, and besides strings of col-
ored bulbs that would die in their entirety if just one
burned out, it had bubbling lights, always a favorite of
mine. And shiny, quite breakable globes. I am grinning
from ear-to-ear in these emulsified recollections; not only
because of the warm, fuzzy feeling that was mine because
of the season, but because of the wrapped gifts under the
tree. I received lots more than I gave back then.
Through the years of working as a newspaper guy, I’ve
seen some poignant homecomings: a little boy in oversized
jammies and robe getting home on Christmas Eve after
being cured of a blood disease that kept him hospitalized
for five months; a U.S. Navy ship docking a few days be-
fore Dec. 25 after months of war zone deployment, bring-
ing home hundreds of sailors to be greeted with hugs,
kisses and tears of delight by family and friends; a long-
lost son and brother landing at Lindbergh Field to be
greeted by two sisters and the parents with unbridled emo-
tions, just in time for a tremendous holiday celebration.
Joy being the prevailing emotion.
Pure happiness at intense times of loving and being
loved; at knowing the full force of Christmas blessing; of
finding peace of mind and faith that good things happen; at
feeling a Spirit beyond description. That there really is a
Power for Good, and that such a being loves us beyond our
comprehension.
If only we could retain such feelings more often. If we
could remember the Spirit of sharing and caring year-
round, not just at Christmas. If only we could derive more
pleasure from giving than receiving.
If only …
CORRECTION:
Based on information provided by Josephine Inter-
agency Narcotics Agency, an incorrect address was
printed in a page 1 article in last week’s issue. The address
given for Freddie Tamayo, 5565 Westside Road, is not his
address, according to the residents who live there.
Illinois Valley News
An Independent Weekly Newspaper Co-owned and
published by Robert R. (Bob) and Jan Rodriguez
Bob Rodriguez, Editor El Jefe
Entered as second class matter June 11, 1937 at Post
Office as Official Newspaper for Josephine County and
Josephine County Three Rivers School District, published
at 321 S. Redwood Hwy., Cave Junction, OR 97523
Periodicals postage paid at Cave Junction, OR 97523
Post Office Box 1370 USPS 258-820
Telephone (541) 592-2541, FAX (541) 592-4330
Volume 66, No. 40
Staff: Cindy Newton, Britt Fairchild,
Chris Robertson, Steve Fairchild, Becky Loudon
& Kacy Clement
Member: Oregon Newspaper Publishers Association
(Editor’s Note: Views
and commentary ex-
pressed in letters to the
editor are strictly those
of the letter-writers.
* * *
Typed,
double-
spaced letters are ac-
ceptable for considera-
tion. Hand-written letters
that are double-spaced
and highly legible also
can be considered for
publication. Cards of
thanks are not accepted
as letters.)
***
‘Real Story’
From Rick Meier
Cave Junction
Saddam Hussein was
captured on Saturday, Dec.
13 by U.S. forces outside
his hometown of Tikrit.
Te l e v i s i o n n e t wo r k s
scrambled to get the story
out. But in Baghdad, signs
the size of billboards
mounted on the rooftops
and fronts of various build-
ings in the town square
months before told the real
story: one read AC
DELCO, and another
SAMSUNG.
‘Tree project’
From Leeandra
DiFuria
Cave Junction
The Forestry Action
Committee (FAC) has pro-
vided many services to
Illinois Valley and one of
its more popular programs
is the Tree-Planting Pro-
ject.
The Tree-Planting
Project is beginning its
12th year and the staff,
along with countless vol-
unteers and landowners,
have worked toward the
goal of riparian restoration
on privately owned land.
Riparian restoration in
I.V. is beneficial to the
water table in other loca-
tions as well, due to the
connecting waterways. It
provides healthy salmon
runs, wildlife habitat, as
well as water quality and
quantity.
In the past we have
provided and will continue
to provide native seedlings
at “no cost” to the land-
owners as an incentive to
restore riparian and flood
plain areas. Working to-
gether toward a common
goal provides habitat for
fish and wildlife along
with improved water qual-
ity and supply.
The project also pro-
vides site consultations and
educational tree planting
presentations to schools
and other organizations as
well as Volunteer Tree-
Planting Day.
This year we are hav-
ing difficulty with our
funding for the purchase of
seedlings and are research-
ing alternative funding for
next year.
However, this year the
bottom line is we need
money to purchase seed-
lings. We need to raise
$3,500 to add to our cur-
rent funding in order to
purchase native seedlings.
Donations are tax deducti-
ble and will be used for
the purchase of seedlings
and other needed supplies.
It is our policy to pur-
chase as many species as
possible from area nurser-
ies; this is a direct contri-
bution to our local econ-
omy. A donation of $1
purchases an average of
two trees, so a little can go
a long way.
Contact FAC for more
information at 592-4098.
‘No to terrorism’
From William
Schneider
Cave Junction
For the moment let’s
forget our differences of
opinion, the politically
correct cocktail party chit-
chat, the Bush bashing and
anti-United States rheto-
ric; and let’s take a hard
look at the situation in the
world today concerning
terrorism.
Aside from all the rea-
sons about how we got
into this tragic state of
affairs, the fact remains
that on Sept. 11, 2001,
some 3,000 people were
murdered in a matter of
minutes by trained and
financed suicidal religious
fanatics. It seems that the
rest of the world thought it
was an attack on the
United States instead of
what it really was: an at-
tack on the civilized
world.
To get a better per-
spective, these terrorists
would kill us a million a
minute if they could. That
is how very serious the
world situation is from
here to Iraq, from Istanbul
to Bali, from Israel to
Kenya, from Moscow to
on and on if allowed.
These suicide bomber
acts have nothing to do
with Allah or Islam, but
are instead the acts of
mindless, brainwashed
humans interested only in
their reward in the afterlife
as martyrs.
They show no interest
in bettering the lives of
their people in their homi-
cidal venting. They are the
most selfish, self-serving
ignorance of humankind.
Those who would assist
(Continued on page 3)
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POSTMASTER: Please send address changes to
P.O. Box 1370, Cave Junction, OR. 97523
592-3562
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Meals are served in the
CJ County Bldg.
FRIDAY, DEC. 26
*Porcupine meatballs,
creamed potatoes,
mixed vegetables,
squash bread,
tapioca pudding
MONDAY, DEC. 29
*Tuna loaf with meat
sauce, whipped
potatoes with cream
sauce, green peas,
caraway rye bread,
ranger cookie
WEDNESDAY, DEC. 31
*Roast beef with gravy,
whipped potatoes with
gravy, broccoli
Normandy, onion bread,
pink confetti
New Year’s cake
We are your
Hometown Station
SPIRITS RECALLED -- Melanie Gayle and Anita John-
son with their mother, Joy Hoskins (not shown) pro-
vided inspirational music during the annual Light Up A
Life program on Tuesday, Dec. 16 in Immanuel United
Methodist Church. Some 60 persons attended the
Lovejoy Hospice event to honor the dead.