"Most nights for the last year, Darlene Hamilton slept four hours and woke at about 4.30am. She wanted to sleep, but she could not. Instead the 66-year-old started the day at her Altadena rental home in morning darkness with a familiar routine, scouring through websites of local humane societies and lost animal groups in search of two familiar little faces."
"When fire came for Hamilton's community one windy evening in January 2025, it sent countless lives into chaos. Survivors' loss is felt in large and small ways, from the treasured 80-year-old hardware store, now gone, to the family photos, or a grandmother's wedding dress, burned up. Hamilton lost the green Altadena home she shared with her husband, the dragon fruit plants and the cherished Christmas ornaments she had spent a lifetime collecting."
"And most painfully, she lost her two beloved cats Merlyn and Kiki. She had them for 12 years, through the early days of her marriage, her mother's death and during her career as a graphic designer and art director. While Hamilton worked from home, Merlyn, a 17lb Maine Coon, always sat by her side, and Kiki, a petite shy Calico, was never far."
Darlene Hamilton slept about four hours nightly for a year, waking around 4:30 a.m., and spent mornings searching humane-society and lost-animal websites for two missing cats. A fast-moving wildfire struck Altadena in a January 2025 windstorm, destroying homes, businesses and personal belongings. Hamilton lost her green rental, dragon fruit plants and lifetime Christmas ornaments. Merlyn, a 17lb Maine Coon, and Kiki, a petite Calico, were left behind when Hamilton fled with doors open. Hamilton hung posters, searched daily, and committed to looking for a year and a day, holding hope they might have survived.
Read at www.theguardian.com
Unable to calculate read time
Collection
[
|
...
]