My City of Ruins

My city is on fire!

As I write this, I have multiple friends scattered throughout the Los Angeles basin that have either been forced to evacuate their homes or who are on evacuation alert and on the cusp of having to flee for their lives.

Now, as you may know, I am an Angelino, born and raised. I went to UCLA undergrad, and I have lived and worked in many of the areas suffering the worst of the current raging fires, including Pacific Palisades. In fact, this morning, I got word that the condo I rented in the mid-1990s just off Sunset Blvd. and Temescal Canyon Road is no longer there, having been charred to the ground overnight by ravenous flames.

Upon hearing this news I felt a shadow cross my heart, because my city is in ruins.

And the worst part for me, as a man of action, is that there is very little I can directly do about it, save for opening my home to those who might need safe harbor. So, to those closest to me (you know who you are), consider this your public invitation to join me in safety and loving embrace.

As for the cause of this fire, the solutions to mitigate future fires and the inane political factors that keep my beloved Los Angeles/Southern California in virtual tinderbox conditions, well, I will leave those aside for the moment. As the “Gambler” Kenny Rogers might say, “There’ll be time enough for countin’, when the dealin’s done.”

Today, my city is in ruins, and I feel impelled to write about it and to try to help heal the immediate wound.

In one of his best, though not nearly as well-known, songs, Bruce Springsteen sings about the devastation and rebirth of a community in “My City of Ruins.” The live version here from a 2002 performance in Barcelona, Spain, does a great job of expressing the healing power of passion and the spirit of togetherness in the face of adversity. Check out the video here if you want to feel how I feel today, and if you want your soul to be stirred with the inspirational refrain to: “Come on, rise up! Come on, rise up!”

If you feel like doing something to help with your dollars, then the best charity I know of that directly helps provide aid to victims of wildfires or other natural disasters is the California Fire Foundation. This 501(c)(3) non-profit organization also provides support for fallen firefighter families. Of course, your donations here are tax deductible.

Finally, to my city of ruins, I implore you to keep calm and carry on. Together, we shall, as Bruce says… come on, rise up!

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On Choosing a Better Day

Time and problems seem to find their way

It’s up to us to choose a better day

With every nightfall there’s a mornin’ sun

Trust ourselves and we can get this done

–Jim Woods, “Smile”

I will leave you today with a thought that keeps popping into my head, along with the melody of a song I wrote some years ago. The song is about how to heal a broken relationship. And while I am certainly no expert on this topic, I do know that the key to healing any hurtful situation is to choose better. And, if both parties choose better, you can at least make an honest and rational attempt at finding solutions.

Wisdom about money, investing and life can be found anywhere. If you have a good quote that you’d like me to share with your fellow readers, send it to me, along with any comments, questions and suggestions you have about my newsletters, seminars or anything else. Click here to ask Jim.

In the name of the best within us,

Jim Woods