Christmas from the Heart of Altadena

Liz Espinoza has a Charlie Brown Christmas tree this year, nestled in a corner of her small rented apartment.

It’s far different than last year when she and her family had a tall pine they could decorate that towered over the roof of their comfortable Altadena home.

Like so many families, the Espinoza family lost their house and all of their possessions in the Eaton Fire. It’s been a heartbreaking year for their community.

There is so much she misses – the peacocks that visited her garden each day, her longtime neighbors and the independence she felt living in a unique community with other creative residents.

The senior artist lost everything, things that cannot be replaced – family keepsakes and all of the illustrations and mixed media artwork that she created over decades.

Original artwork she traded, bought or was gifted from other notable artists also went up in flames. That work cannot be replaced, as some of those artists have passed away.

As challenging as it has been to deal with day-to-day bureaucracy, delays and snags in the insurance process, she is creating more art and drawing the interesting images she is known for, and having faith, she is looking toward a positive outcome.

Espinoza, using solar lights for decorations, set up a Christmas tree on the empty lot where her house once stood. Next to it, on the eve of the feast day, she placed a statue of La Virgen de Guadalupe. It was a gift from her neighbor, whose house survived the blaze, and it was important, Espinoza said, to have “her there on that special day.”

Another neighbor, who still had cacti growing in front of their burned-out lot, put tiny Santa hats on each stalk of the plant.

While mere decorations to some, it was a statement of resilience to say this property was still theirs, and step by step, they would get to the finish line to rebuild.

In the meantime, Espinoza took a small potted pine tree that was recently offered for free to Altadena residents who lost their homes in the fire. They were also giving out little boxes of 12 ornaments that they could pick from.

She reflected that the big pine that stood in her yard grew from a small pot that they took in and out of their house to decorate for Christmas until it got too big to bring in, so her husband, Rocky, planted it in their front yard.

“It was home for the squirrels and the birds, and an occasional visit from the raccoons. It gave us pine cones every year. It provided much-needed shade to our house in the hot summer months.”

Edison cut the badly burned tree down, concerned it would fall onto their power lines.

“So I picked up one of the pine trees to keep our tradition alive. Plus, I picked up 12 ornaments that they were giving away. I tried to choose some that resembled ornaments that we had or that represented our lives in some way.”

Among them, Espinoza said she selected a snail ornament “because the process of rebuilding is so slow.” She also picked up a nutcracker recalling her daughter’s childhood dance performances and a small Aladdin’s lamp ornament “to make new wishes and dreams come true.”