Illinois Valley News, Cave Junction, OR Wednesday, December 7, 2005
A note: Remember to run in the rain
A little girl had been
shopping with her Mom in a
large department store.
She must have been 6,
this beautiful red-haired,
freckle-faced image of inno-
cence. It was pouring out-
side; the kind of rain that
gushes over the top of rain
gutters, so much in a hurry
to hit the Earth that it has no
time to flow down the spout.
We all stood there un-
der the awning and just in-
side the store main entrance.
We waited, some patiently,
others irritated because Na-
ture messed up their hurried
day.
I am always mesmer-
ized by rainfall. I get lost in
the sound and sight of the
heavens washing away the
dirt and dust of the world.
Memories of running,
splashing, so carefree as a
child, came pouring in as a
welcome reprieve from all
the worries of my day.
The little voice was so
sweet as it broke the hyp-
notic trance that we were all
caught in, “Mom, let’s run
through the rain.”
“What?” Mom asked.
“Let’s run through the
rain!” she repeated.
“No, honey. We’ll wait
until it slows down a bit,”
Mom replied.
This young child waited
about another minute and
repeated: “Mom, let’s run
Breast Cancer
Support Group
Illinois Valley Women’s
Breast Cancer Support Group
will meet Tuesday, Dec. 13 at
10:30 a.m. at the I.V. Family
Resource Center on E. River
Street in Cave Junction.
A representative conduct-
ing an outreach survey for the
Susan G. Komen Breast Can-
cer Research Foundation will
attend. This survey will be
used to plan programs and
direction for the foundation
for the next two to five years.
Said the club, “This is an
opportunity to make your
ideas heard. If you can’t come
to the meeting phone Vici
Carlton at 592-6625, as blank
survey forms are available.
“Make your voice count.
The survey will be collected
through December. Any
woman may attend.”
Forestry Action
Committee
The Illinois Basin Interest
Group Forestry Action Com-
mittee Tree Planting Project is
in full swing.
“We have been signing up
many land owners who want
free trees for riparian areas, and
trees are still available,” said
Suzanne Vautier, coordinator.
She added, “Properties
having water, whether it is
river, stream, seasonal creek or
pond, are eligible, and the land
owner should contact the FAC
office at the lower compound
of the U.S. Forest Service in
Cave Junction, or phone 592-
4098 for more information.
“The first packing day is
Wednesday, Dec. 14. We
need volunteers to help with
preparing trees for distribu-
tion, and we need volunteers
to bring food for the tree-
packing volunteers. Tree
packing will start at 9:30 a.m.
and will go until about lunch-
time.
“Anyone wishing to par-
ticipate can phone the FAC
office Mondays to Fridays
from 9 a.m. until 4 p.m. If no
one answers the phone we are
out prescribing trees for a land
owner; just leave a message
with information on how to
contact you and we will get
back with you.”
through the rain.”
“We’ll get soaked if we
do,” Mom said.
“No, we won’t, Mom.
That’s not what you said
this morning,” the young
girl said as she tugged at her
Mom’s arm.
“This morning? When
did I say we could run
through the rain and not get
wet?”
“Don’t you remember?
When you were talking to
Daddy about his cancer, you
said, ‘If God can get us
through this, He can get us
through anything!’ ”
The entire crowd went
dead silent. I swear you
couldn’t hear anything but
the rain. No one came or left
in the next few minutes.
Mom paused and thought
for a moment about what
she would say.
Now, some would
laugh it off and scold her for
being silly. Some might
even ignore what was said.
But this was a moment of
affirmation in a young
child’s life. A time when
innocent trust can be nur-
tured so that it will bloom
into faith.
“Honey, you are abso-
lutely right. Let’s run
through the rain. If God lets
us get wet; well, maybe we
just needed washing,” Mom
said.
Then off they ran.
We all stood watching,
smiling and laughing as they
darted past the cars and yes,
through the puddles. They
held their shopping bags
over their heads just in case.
They got soaked.
But they were followed
by a few who screamed and
laughed like children all the
way to their cars. And yes, I
did. I ran. I got wet. I
needed washing.
Circumstances or peo-
ple can take away your ma-
terial possessions; they can
take away your money, and
they can take away your
health. But no one can ever
take away your precious
memories.
So, don’t forget to make
time and take the opportu-
nity to make memories
every day.
To everything there is a
season, a time to every pur-
pose under Heaven.
They say it takes a min-
ute to find a special person,
an hour to appreciate them,
a day to love them, but then
an entire life to forget them.
So stay in touch with
your family and friends --
you never know when you’ll
need each other.
And don’t forget to run
in the rain.
(Editor’s Note: The preceding
appeared in December newsletter of
Cave Junction based Life/Lines, a
prison outreach ministry. The article
was submitted by Ellis Chen, who
lives in Vacaville, Calif.)
Page 9
Energy efficiency can help reduce costs;
suggestions offered to aid home owners
Natural gas users can
expect to pay an average of
$350 more this winter com-
pared with last year, an in-
crease of 48 percent, accord-
ing to a recent report for the
Energy Information Ad-
ministration.
And those who heat
with oil will pay an esti-
mated $378, or 32 percent
more.
As a solution, the Alli-
ance to Save Energy sug-
gests energy efficiency, and
the simplest place to start
saving is at home.
The American Council
for an Energy-Efficient
Economy estimates that if
each person increases the
energy efficiency in major
appliances by 10 percent to
30 percent, it will release the
demand for electricity by the
equivalent of 25 large power
plants.
Saving energy also
saves money. By using en-
ergy-efficient products, the
average household can save
up to $400 per year on util-
ity bills.
Here are some ways to
save energy at home:
*Weatherize your
home. The gaps around the
windows and doors in an
average U.S. house are the
equivalent of a 3-by-3-foot
hole in the wall. Caulk and
weather strip to seal these
air leaks. This can save as
much as 40 percent on heat-
ing and cooling costs.
Stop air from escaping
under doors with “sweeps”
or “shoes” attached to the
bottom. Use window putty
to seal gaps around loose
window panes.
Also, install foam gas-
kets behind all the light
switches and electrical outlet
covers. They help seal the
holes caused when the out-
lets and light switches are
built into homes. Use child
safety plugs to keep cold air
from coming in through the
sockets.
*Get a programmable
thermostat. Those that have
earned the Energy Star label
help save money and keep
homes comfortable by auto-
matically adjusting tempera-
ture settings while you are
asleep or away, saving ap-
proximately $100 per year.
*Consider zoning. In a
typical two-story home, the
upstairs can be up to 10 de-
grees warmer than down-
stairs. One solution to help
regulate uneven tempera-
tures is a control system that
divides houses into separate
zones, like those offered by
Aprilaire.
These systems use mul-
tiple thermostats and damp-
ers in the heating and cool-
ing duct work that control
temperature in separate ar-
eas to deliver conditioned
air only to the part of homes
that needs it. The result is
greater comfort and conven-
ience, as well as energy sav-
ings of up to 30 percent.
For more information,
visit aprilaire.com.
Install a ceiling fan in
the largest room of your
house. This will allow you
to lower the setting on your
air conditioner by 3 to 6
degrees, which will save up
to 25 percent of energy costs
of home cooling.
Additionally, more than
$125 annually can be saved
by replacing three old-style
light bulbs with modern
fluorescent twisters; setting
the heat at 68 degrees in the
winter and air conditioners
at 78 degrees in summer;
and unplugging three appli-
ances -- or switching off a
power strip full of plugs --
when not in use.
(NewsUSA)
Holiday parties? Remember to use a designated driver. It’s the sane thing to do.