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MONDAY February 23, 2004 - Subscribe - Contact Us - Rate Card Valley&State Backpage O&E Sports Archives Classifieds Faith&Beliefs Obituaries Revels December 23, 2003 Remembering those who give In this season of giving, I want to be sure to point out two entities that help many people in our community all year long, year in and year out. Ashland has its own Meals on Wheels program, which receives no funds or grants from outside sources other than the occasional donation from some generous person or family. While recipients pay what they can, and the MOW organization pays what it can, it's due to the generosity of our two meal providers that the program can continue. Ashland Community Hospital provides special dietary meals for the folks on our lunch schedule, while Cascade Kitchen at SOU puts together anywhere from 25 to 45 dinners every day. And while SOU is on holiday breaks, ACH fills in by providing all the dinners so that we can continue to keep good, hot, nutritious meals going out to our clients every day all year long - especially important during the holidays. These meals often mean the difference between staying in one's own home, or having to go into an assisted living facility. They mean independence and health for many seniors in our community. It's so important that we all pitch in to be a community of support for our friends and neighbors, and Ashland Community Hospital and SOU are certainly doing their part by providing Meals on Wheels - they deserve our heartfelt thanks. Marilyn Bailey, Board Member, Meals on Wheels Stillness and the Christmas season Bethlehem and the birth of the Christ-child is not about a different place and time. It is about us. It is a quiet birth taking place within each of our hearts. The ever-appearing of the Christ is a birth of a higher spirit, a higher hope, and a higher affection. Is there room in the 'inn' of our consciousness for the Christ? In a sense, every moment of our lives we choose between the overcrowded inn, and the manger. When we choose the manger, we find a stillness of heart that allows something uncommonly higher to be born. The same spirit of meekness which permeated that profoundly innocent event of Jesus' birth begins with stillness -- a humble trusting of our lives to that Divine power which is forever guiding us, like the wise men before us, to Christ's appearing. This Christ is the light that quells our fears of isolation, loss, poverty, and illness. Even alone on a battlefield in a far corner of the globe, our way through fear's darkness can begin with a single mental point of light, symbolized by the bright star that guided the shepherds in Bethlehem at the time of the nativity. Even the angels of inspiration are still present within, to support our cherished hopes for peace, health, sustenance and safety. They protect the Christ-idea deep within our hearts. They give us the assurance that we are not alone, but ever united in Love. Carol Kelling, Phoenix Do away with the extremes I was awed with the ease and lack of shame Bill O'Reilly displayed while going from group sex to the nativity scene in just a few lines in his Monday commentary. Amazing! Does he proof-read his prose? Anyway, my point here, after seeing in the past weeks the letters of a few irate fellow Tidings readers, is that many of us resent the hateful blab of fanatics FROM BOTH SIDES OF THE POLITICAL SPECTRUM. This paper's readership is quite educated and can form an opinion without the help of narrow-minded writers. The issue at hand is that instead of getting balanced commentaries which make us ponder an issue, we are attacked by hateful rhetoric that only serves to divide us. This is really not what we need in our quaint little town. There is enough political wrestling around the country, WWF style, and bookstore shelves are overflowing with related literature, should we feel the need for some well-targeted bashing. So, as a community service, would you consider eliminating O'Reilly, Prager and Ivins from your pages as soon as possible and replacing them with commentators interested in creating a dialogue instead of a shouting match? Actually, in the interest of fairness, freedom of speech for all (celebrate diversity!) and realism (keep your friends close to you and your enemies even closer), you could (should?) reserve a once-a-week space for a pro/con commentary where both far right and far left would have a say about a specific topic. Of course, the above-mentioned pundits (axis of evil?) could be invited to go at each other's throats at that time. Each one of us readers would then decide which opinion we like best and vote accordingly. Isn't that the point of a democracy? Or even a republic? Thank you for considering this request. Thierry Chouard, Ashland DailyTidings.com Home Page Valley&State | Backpage | O&E | Sports | Archives | Weather | Classifieds Columnists | Faith&Beliefs | Obituaries | Revels | Subscribe | Contact Us Copyright 2004 Ashland Daily Tidings and Ottaway Newspapers All Rights Reserved Site Search: A new improved archive search is coming! Look for it in mid-February! .:Advertisements:. RESOURCES - ODOT Road Cams