Our stalwart Fernwood Rain reporter, Eric Fitzgerald is happy to be back in the game again with this photo he captured in Dix Canyon. “You should have seen Owl Falls,� he wrote. It’s good to have the rain and Eric’s Fernwood Rain Report back with catious rainfall numbers (Page 15). Located on the property where Brian Gibson’s Jalan Jalan Imports does business, the historic Owl Falls is a three-story, spring-fed waterfall that runs all year long. The property served as a primary drinking source and an important gathering place for the area’s indigenous population for thousands of years. Add that to your list of places to visit, especially when it rains. Brian welcomes visitors even if you’re not in the market for a giant Buddha. In case you didn’t notice, The Canyon Chronicle was on hiatus for the first part of January. It was a working holiday of sorts with restorative interludes of nature walks and catching up with friends. Oh, and training Birdie, the Border Collie. She’s been exploring Wild Walnut dog park at the junction of Old Canyon and Mulholland Highway, developing social skills with other dogs and learning how to get out of the way when the big dogs get rowdy. Our cover and related story, “Art Integrates Life in Akumal� (Mexico), is one of those surprises that present themselves with perfect timing. This came to us via a press release from Topangan Kim Zanti. She received a grant (See Page 10) to make a documentary film about this year’s community-building arts festival in the Mexican pueblo of Akumal (population 2,000) that Zanti attended in 2018. The town was transformed through a process of “creative placemaking� that relies on “radical trust.� (Pages 8-9) To donate: everybodydancenow.org/donate#fiscalsponsorships. We were delighted to hear that Zoe Mack, who has studied ballet since she was seven, was invited to study at the Bolshoi Ballet Academy in Moscow for six months. The 16-year-old left a week ago accompanied by her mother for the first three weeks. We’re encouraging her to keep a diary and send us occasional dispatches. (Page 5) To donate, visit: gofund.me/17334309; or follow @zoesimonemack. In “Topanga Before Today,� historian Pablo Capra honors the life of Thais Rust Sykes (1925-2021), who passed on December 30, 2021. She grew up in Lower Topanga and “was possibly Topanga’s last living connection to the 1920s,� he writes. (Page 11) In the News. Free COVID test sites; EV Batteries; Snow Night Recap; Town Council Update; Clean up Your Apps; and the astrological forecast for a Valentine’s Day that sizzles. All that and rain! It doesn’t get much better.