“For, lo, the winter is past. The rain is over and gone; the flowers appear on the earth; the time of the singing of birds is come.”
—Song of Solomon 2:11-12a (KJV)
Welcome to West End United Methodist Church's Creation Care news.
We invite you to join us in our love of
God's creation and our work for environmental justice.
Here's a glimpse into what we've been doing and what's coming.
Join us for our Creation Care Committee meeting May 19 at 4:00 p.m. Get theZoom link.
May Musings
This is not Eden, but…
By Alice Sanford
Each morning, around three a.m., I wake to distant whistles, high and lonesome, a warning to street traffic, as trains track through Nashville. The sun’s not up yet, and neither am I. Instead, I snuggle, thankful for bed, family, warm covers, and the luxury of time. This is the time to appreciate the world the Lord has made, a time to rejoice and be glad in it. The trains move on. The dull hum of interstate traffic warns, “This is not Eden.”
The bird songs that fill the air suggest otherwise.
These songs are a daily dawn chorus, usually starting with robins, wrens, and warblers. Outside, the sky slides slowly from indigo to soft pearlescence. As the sky brightens, sparrows and finches add their songs.
Over half the world’s 9,600 bird species are songbirds. Recent discoveries by paleologists of feathered, prehistoric dinosaur remains suggest dinosaurs as the ancestors of my tiny, beloved songbirds. Like everything else on this spinning globe we call Earth, birds pre-date us humans—we who, according to Genesis, were created last.
I rise, fix coffee, and take it to our front porch where I watch sunrise shift to day-sky and try to match our birds’ songs to their names. I’m not very good at this; visual identification is easier. I can easily spot a robin, a cardinal, a blue jay, a pigeon, or a mockingbird. I use my childish knowledge garnered from The Burgess Bird Book or I thumb The Audubon Guide to Birds of North America to distinguish which wrens, which sparrows, which warblers, which woodpeckers consider themselves denizens of our yard. Later in the day, I’ll go back to Cornell’s ornithology site, look for “my” birds in their data bank, and listen to the birdsongs recorded for them.
First, though, I’ll check our birds’ water sources. Access to good water is as important for birds as it is for humans. Whether that water is in a birdbath, a little hanging tub, or some other receptacle, the receptacle must be cleaned and the water freshened almost daily. I’m not sure how much the birds care. Our robins seem happiest with puddles left by a soaking rain. Standing water, however, can provide a breeding ground for mosquitoes. We don’t use pesticides on our premises. The birds themselves, along with our daily attention to their water, provide excellent pest control.
Our yard is filled with vegetation and trees that feed, shelter, and delight songbirds. For the past few years we’ve kept a tangle of rose and honeysuckle (sweet but invasive) on the rock wall outside my window. Each spring, a family of summer tanagers nests inside.
The hummingbirds enjoy the honeysuckle for its nectar.They’re equally delighted to sip from our Rose-of-Sharon, trumpet vine, hibiscus, and lantana. Their favorite colors seem to be red and its variations—pink, orange, lavender, purple. One summer, though, we put out a red hummingbird feeder and were horrified to find that ants, not hummingbirds, loved it. I’ve read that these little jewel birds eat tiny insects, such as gnats and mosquitos. (They did not eat ants.)
Our cardinals, jays, and mockingbirds love our overabundant non-native and invasive bushes of Japanese honeysuckle and privet (long-established before this yard was ours). Any bush-trimming in our yard ceases when we realize that a nest may be disturbed. Wrens, sparrows, chickadees, woodpeckers, warblers, and finches visit annually.
Often the birds bring us gifts: seeds of plants they’ve eaten, seeds that root and thrive in our yard, for their benefit and ours. Our mulberry trees, brought to us by our feathered friends, are my best example of this symbiosis. We humans pick ripe berries from the lower branches. The birds graze on berries far above. God grants enough for all to share in any habitat that hasn’t been over-manipulated, poisoned, or plastered with cement and tar.
Our world, when we are good stewards, is almost Eden. I’m sure of this, in spite of fumes and rumblings from the interstate and trains nearby. Already, green fruit swells on the mulberry branches. Grateful for today’s beauty and bounty, I whisper: “For, lo, the winter is past. The rain is over and gone; the flowers appear on the earth; the time of the singing of birds is come” (Song of Solomon 2:11-12a KJV).
Alice Sanford, a retired classicist, is a member of Christians Under Construction and the Creation Care Committee at West End United Methodist Church.
3 Tips Good for Birds, Bees, and Butterflies
Pollinators—birds, bees, butterflies—are crucial for growing more than one-third of the food we eat. They feed us—we need to feed them! Pesticide use and lack of four-season food sources are causes for the declining pollinator population. Plant flowers, trees, shrubs, perennials, vines, and herbs with the goal of feeding all year long those who feed us. Choose native plants, especially.
Now is a good time to add native plants to your garden. Native plants require less water than lawns or annuals and help prevent erosion, and they do not need fertilizers. They reduce air pollution, and they increase shelter and food for pollinators and other wildlife, reminding us of God’s care for all creation.
Milkweed is the only food that the caterpillars of the monarch butterfly will eat. But the use of pesticides, along roadsides, on crops, and in gardens and parks, is wiping out milkweed and consequently the beautiful butterfly. Avoid using Roundup and other glyphosate-based pesticides and speak up to home-improvement stores to stop the sales. Plant milkweed that is native to your area in your own spaces and watch for the caterpillars and butterflies to thank you with their presence. Plant extra parsley too. It's a favorite food for caterpillars, which become beautiful butterflies.
The battle isn't over yet!
West End's Creation Care Committee hosted a letter-writing training and invited folks to speak up against the request by Waste Management Southern Services to expand the Bordeaux Construction & Demolition (C&D) landfill by 17 acres and 12 more years despite the objections of the community and despite the need to find alternatives to landfills. A dozen West Ender's took action on behalf of creation and justice, including writing letters to Metro Council members and to Metro's Solid Waste Board (SWB). They also attended and spoke at the SWB meeting, where ultimately the Board denied the expansion.
As Christians committed to both care of the earth and to justice, the Creation Care Committee will continue to monitor this issue and identify ways we can work effectively to bring about creation justice.
Plan to Participate
Our next Letter-Writing Advocacy Training will focus on federal legislation supporting the move to renewable energy and helping people through the transition.
Three times will be offered. Please plan to attend one: Sunday, June 13, at 2:00 pm; Monday, June 14, at 11:00 am; Thursday, June 17, at 6:30 pm. REGISTER HERE
As Christians, we can speak up for God's Earth and for our neighbors.
Our United Methodist Social Principles state in the first paragraph,
"We affirm that all creation belongs to God and is a manifestation of God's goodness and providential care. Human beings, nonhuman animals, plants, and other sentient and consentient beings participate in the community of creation, and their flourishing depends upon the care of all God's creation."
westendumc.org/creation-care
When you visit here, you’ll find the creation care ministry resolution adopted by the church’s Ministry Table, educational videos and presentations, training for advocacy, a green giving-guide, and tips for your own faithful stewardship of the earth. The Creation Care Committee is always open to new projects and new people. Stay in touch. Join us for our Creation Care Committee meeting May 19 at 4:00 p.m. Get theZoom link.
Access to good water is as important for birds as it is for humans. Whether that water is in a birdbath, a little hanging tub, or some other receptacle, the receptacle must be cleaned and the water freshened almost daily. I’m not sure how much the birds care. Our robins seem happiest with puddles left by a soaking rain. Standing water, however, can provide a breeding ground for mosquitoes. We don’t use pesticides on our premises. The birds themselves, along with our daily attention to their water, provide excellent pest control. 
They’re equally delighted to sip from our Rose-of-Sharon, trumpet vine, hibiscus, and lantana. Their favorite colors seem to be red and its variations—pink, orange, lavender, purple. One summer, though, we put out a red hummingbird feeder and were horrified to find that ants, not hummingbirds, loved it. I’ve read that these little jewel birds eat tiny insects, such as gnats and mosquitos. (They did not eat ants.)
