Sitara Falcon

I always enjoy interviewing men because they tend to have a slightly different attitude about trauma and loss. Falcon and his family of four left their home up in the foothills of Altadena late on January 7 when the smoke was already thick and big embers were violently flying through the air. Their home didn't burn, but they could never go back because of the extensive damage and their landlord's decision to sell.

Falcon is a TK/Kindergarten teacher, so he understands child development and has valuable insights to share. But on January 7th, he was in survival mode. He didn't think about the effects on his kids of leaving their home in the middle of the night, not knowing if they'd ever come back again.

We talked about the gamut of losses, including our favorite hiking trails and the beauty and former vitality of the Altadena community. We all know Altadena will come back, but it will be different, and it will be a long time before people rebuild, and schools and businesses reopen. We had a great discussion about resilience and watching the students of Elliot Arts, whose school burned down, perform Shrek at the Ahmanson Theater in Los Angeles. It was an incredible experience to see the community come together to support kids who lost their school, and many of whom also lost homes.

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Special thanks to Josephine Wiggs for the song "Time Does Not Bring Relief" from her album "We Fall."

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