In normal years, looking at pictures from my uncle living in northern California is a welcomed mental escape from the endless dreary Michigan fall and winter days. His dog runs loose on the forest trails which appear to be cushioned with the perfect blend of bark, leaves and a soft soil. While the sun shines bright above, those in the woodland trails are protected by a heavy, natural canopy provided by the redwood and pine trees extending hundreds of feet in the air. The rays that manage to sneak through create dancing shadows on the sponge-like ground as the winds blow treetops from side to side. Ironically, that same canopy hides the trails in pictures taken from higher elevations as the hills and mountains extend as far as the eye can see. When I look at those pictures, I like to imagine that the pathways and mountains smell like the Huron National Forest of northern Michigan in the summer time. It has always been one of my goals to join my family in a vacation to northern California to test this for myself.

This year has been anything but ordinary for the residents and visitors of California. According to the California Fire government website, there have been 8,336 fires across the state in 2017 which has consumed 1,138,907 acres. To put this in context, this is more land destroyed than the entire state of Rhode Island. The fires in northern California, in October alone, have taken the lives of over 50 people, destroyed over 14,000 homes and resulted in over three billion dollars of damage. Those pictures that depicted an unending oasis of rolling hills and nature transformed to a desolate, lifeless moonscape with nothing but the charred remains and broken dreams of what use to be.

Although it is likely hard to see at the moment, there is hope for the people of California that wake up every day to face the full-on destruction that has forever impacted their lives. There is the knowledge that residents will rebuild their homes and dreams while the forest will regenerate itself and, someday, be as beautiful as we can remember in memories, pictures and imaginations. Our power lies acting upon our feelings of responsibility and accountability to help those in need. We do this by increasing our technological knowledge, through exercises like this, that allows us to highlight their plight and direct efforts to those organizations which are best positioned to provide direct assistance. As our powers increase, so will our abilities to reach more people and thus increase the powers of those individuals and teams who comprise those relief groups.