I Love LA

A personal reflection on the fires in a city I love.

News of the fires in Los Angeles has been hard for me to witness. Every photo feels personal. I recognize the streets, the hills, the places now shown in before-and-after comparisons that are heart-wrenching to see.

I was born in San Gabriel, spent my early years in Pasadena, and visited family in Arcadia every year from Colorado, where I grew up. My grandfather owned racehorses that ran at Santa Anita, and a yacht at Balboa Bay from where he’d set off for Catalina. The landscape of Los Angeles — its neighborhoods, its spirit — feels like an old friend I know by heart. I still own a home there and have many friends and subscribers in the area.

The city being an old friend to me is thanks in part to a buddy who was born and raised in its sprawling embrace. He took pride in avoiding freeways, weaving through secret side streets while others sat trapped in gridlock. Through his eyes and countless drives, Los Angeles spoke to me in a language of canyons and corner stores, until I found myself fluent in its maze of meanings. Now I watch this familiar friend burn, neighborhoods I learned to love wrapped in smoke and flame.

I know from my time running Socks for Japan after the 2011 earthquake and tsunami that disaster creates two different worlds: the one before and the one after. When the fires stop, people will navigate a changed city. Streets will look different, routes will need rethinking, and every turn will be a reminder of what happened. But I also know this: Recovery does come. The lessons of navigating through the ashes fade with time, replaced by restored streets, rebuilt homes, regrowth. That day feels distant now, but it will arrive.

I love LA, as Randy Newman sings. His song mentions the Santa Ana winds blowing hot from the north. Winds have been part of the city’s soul long before they became the harbingers of doom in today’s news. They usually bring happiness, cooling the valleys and rustling the palms. I look forward to the day when these winds boost moods again, carrying scents of jasmine and sage instead of ash and fear.

To everyone affected by the fires, my heart is with you. Los Angeles is a city of resilience, and I believe in its strength to rise from this.