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The INDEPENDENT, December 21, 2006
Christmas Church
Services
Can You Dig It?
By Schann Nelson
OSU Master Gardener
By the time you read this, the days will
be getting longer. Oh, happy solstice! Even
though the dark days of winter are ahead,
the actual time between sunrise and sunset
will be getting longer. We, of course, will
hardly ever SEE that brightly glowing ball of
fire in the sky. Up here in our little valley, we
will be under the clouds most of the time,
even when we aren’t actually getting on.
If the sun should chance to appear, it
would not be a bad idea to record the angle and position of the arc
of the sun across your property. Eventually, the sun will come out
and you will be ready and able to mark these positions at both the
winter and summer solstice, thus mapping the maximum available
sun on your personal piece of earth. I’m always surprised by the
difference in the range of the winter and summer sun. The back
northeast corner of the house gets a few low rays for about two
weeks surrounding the summer solstice. In winter, the sun is so
low in the sky that no sun gets to the back side at all. We get great
afternoon sun in two big windows facing southeast, and can cap-
ture a fair bit of solar heat during the day. In my yard, I have a
perennial bed between two big cherry trees that gets only a tiny
amount of direct sun, and that is in winter, after the leaves have
fallen. The hostas, hellebores, and ferns are well adapted and
very happy in this location.
This time of year, in the cold and dark, is a great time for read-
ing. Garden writing has a long and well respected history that I
would know a lot more about if I was fonder of non-fiction. Most of
my gardening books are rather technical, though I am thoroughly
enjoying Michael Pollans, The Omnivore’s Dilemma . Pollan takes
his title from the work of University of Pennsylvania research psy-
chologist Paul Rozin. A specialized eater, such as a koala, has its
dinner preference hard-wired into its genes. Human omnivores, in
addition to huge amounts of brain space devoted to taste and
smell in order to identify what is edible, have evolved cultural rules
across the world to determine what is “good” to eat. This the om-
nivores dilemma: “What, out of the vast array of food at the gro-
cery store, should I eat?” The overwhelming diversity of foods
available creates a level of anxiety exploited by food scientists
and marketers to exaggerate our worries and then offer new alter-
natives to improve our diets. Pollan’s writing is clear cut, not tech-
nical, often humorous, providing lots of material for thought as he
traces three different food chains from seed to consumption.
I’ve also been looking at the pictures in two other books, Color
for Your Winter Yard and Garden, by Helen Van Pelt Wilson (one
of the pantheon of worshiped garden writers) and Birdscaping
Your Garden, a Rodale publication by George Adams. Wilson gar-
dens in the east and her winter landscapes are developed for cli-
mates where snow is always part of the winter landscape. Her
work is based on developing the view YOU have from your winter
window. I’ve used this as a guide for developing my perennial bed,
coordinating the positions of plants by triangulating how (I think)
they will look within the bed in summer, and what
will remain to be seen in winter. Interesting
colors and textures of bark stand out near-
ly as well against the solid green/brown of
the winter woods are they do against the
snow. There are lots of winter berries, as
on holly, that provide food and habitat for
birds, and the addition of color and life al-
ways appreciated by the gardener.
Birdscaping is a concept for turning your
backyard into a sanctuary for birds. Of course the
best birdscapes are extensions of the natural landscape, and
most of us do not want a landscape composed of yet more woods.
The challenge then becomes one of providing birds with places to
hide, to nest and to shelter themselves from extreme weather, and
also to provide a steady source of food and water within a yard.
This is often my justification for leaving weeds room to grow to
maturity, the seeds are always gone by spring and I love watching
the tiny birds land on the slenderest stems to get the seeds.
And in celebration of the tuning of the year, a Native American
story, taken from The Solstice Evergreen by Sheryl Ann Karas:
When the plants and trees were first made, the Great Mystery
gave a gift to each species. But first he set up a contest to deter-
mine which gift would be most useful to whom.
“I want you to stay awake and keep watch over the earth for
seven nights,” he told them.
The young trees and plants were so excited to be trusted with
such an important job that the first night they found it difficult not
to stay awake. However, the second night was not so easy, and
just before dawn a few fell asleep. On the third night, the trees and
plants whispered among themselves in the wind trying to keep
from dropping off, but it was too much work for some of them.
Even more fell asleep on the fourth night.
By the time the seventh night came, the only trees and plants
still awake were the cedar, the pine, the spruce, the fir, the holly
and the laurel.
“What wonderful endurance you have!” exclaimed the Great
Mystery. “You shall be given the gift of remaining green forever.
You will be the guardians of the forest. Even in the seeming dead
of winter your brother and sister creatures will find life protected in
your branches.”
Ever since then, all other trees and plants lose their leaves and
sleep all winter while the evergreens stay awake.
Vernonia Community Church
957 State Avenue
Christmas Eve Service at
7:00 p.m. will celebrate the
birth of Christ with singing and
celebrating. All are invited.
St. Mary’s Catholic Church
960 Missouri Ave., Vernonia
Mass will be held at 12 noon
December 24 and December
25, and January 1, 2007.
Vernonia Christian Church
410 North Street
Candlelight service at 7:00
p.m. on Christmas Eve.
St. Augustine (Canterbury)
Episcopal Church
375 North Street, Vernonia
(Grange Hall)
Christmas service will be
held Saturday, December 23,
at 5:00 p.m.
Attention Christian Men!
Announcing the first meeting of the Vernonia Christian Men's Fellowship.
Saturday, January 6th from 8:00AM to 10:00AM
Vernonia Community Learning Center. Coffee, muffins & fruit provided by The Black Bear
Vernonia Christian Men's Fellowship*
L i v i n g O u r F a i t h I n E v e r y d a y L i f e
If you have any questions, contact Dean Camarda at 503-429-5160.
*Not affiliated with any specific church or denomination .
Church Directory
C HURCH OF J ESUS C HRIST
OF L ATTER D AY S AINTS
Jeff Cheney, Branch President
1350 E. Knott Street, Vernonia
503 429-7151
Sacrament Meeting, Sunday 10 a.m.
Sunday School & Primary 11:20 a.m.
Relief Society, Priesthood and
Young Women, Sunday 12:10 p.m.
S EVENTH D AY A DVENTIST
John Aitken II, Pastor, 396-1856
2nd Ave. and Nehalem St., Vernonia
503 429-8301
Morning Worship, 9:15 a.m.
Bible Study 10:30 a.m.
V ERNONIA C OMMUNITY C HURCH
Grant Williams, Pastor
957 State Avenue, Vernonia
503 429-6790
Sunday Breakfast 9:00 a.m.
Morning Worship 9:45 a.m.
*B.L.A.S.T. w/Nursery 10:00 a.m.
*Bible Learning and Scripture Training
Wednesday Prayer Meeting 7:00 p.m.
S T . M ARY ' S C ATHOLIC C HURCH
A SSEMBLY OF G OD
Rev. Luan Tran, Administrator
960 Missouri Avenue, Vernonia
503 429-8841
Mass Schedule
Sunday 12:00 Noon
Religious Education
Sunday 10:30 a.m.
Wayne and Maureene Marr
662 Jefferson Ave., Vernonia,
503 429-0373
Sunday School 9:45 a.m.
Morning Worship 11:00 a.m
V ERNONIA F OURSQUARE C HURCH
Carl Pense, Pastor
850 Madison Avenue, Vernonia
503 429-1103
Sunday Worship Service: 10:30 a.m.
Children’s Sunday School
F IRST B APTIST C HURCH
359 “A” Street, Vernonia
503 429-5190
Sunday School 9:45 a.m.
Sunday Worship Service 11:00 a.m.
Wednesday Prayer Meeting 7:00 p.m.
S T . A UGUSTINE (C ANTERBURY )
E PISCOPAL C HURCH
375 North St. (Vernonia Grange Hall)
Vernonia, 503 705-2173
Please call for service schedule.
N EHALEM V ALLEY B IBLE C HURCH
Gary Taylor, Pastor
Grant & North Streets, Vernonia
503 429-5378
Sunday School 10:00 a.m.
Morning Worship 11:00 a.m.
Nursery available
Wednesday Service 7:00 p.m.
V ERNONIA C HRISTIAN C HURCH
Sam Hough, Evangelist
410 North Street, Vernonia
503 429-6522
Sunday School 9:45 a.m.
Morning Worship 11:00 a.m.
Every Wednesday:
Ladies' Bible Study 9:30 a.m.
Ladies’ Worship 10:00 a.m.
Children’s Choir 3:00 p.m.
Family Bible Study 7:00 p.m.