I grew up in the backcountry of San Diego County and I well remember living with the ever-present threat of fire. Every summer, and especially in the fall, we would burn thanks to the Santa Ana winds and dry brush. It would be 110 in October and the heat would be even worse because of fire. But we accepted it as the price we paid for living in that part of the country.

We have some wildfires burning here where I live now. We had a relatively mild, dry winter and the trees are dry too. I hope the firefighters will get the upper hand on all of the fires burning out of control.