A year later, I drove back through the Palisades after the 2025 fire—and it’s hard to put into words what it feels like.

Some places look familiar. Others, not at all. You see the spaces where homes once stood, the outlines of what used to be someone’s everyday life. And then, right alongside it, there are signs of something else—rebuilding, regrowth, people still showing up for this place they love.