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• One Foot In The Black

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Greg Kowalski grows up in Michigan with an abusive father, a Saginaw city firefighter. Cut off from his family, Greg travels to California to become a seasonal firefighter. He is tormented by the contradiction of hatred for his father and the need to have his father’s approval and love. Greg moves on to the brutal LACoFD Helitak training academy at Camp 8 where he graduates and begins work. He suffers traumatic stress after his crew is trapped on a mountainside in an explosive wildfire in which his captain and mentor dies. The night before this incident, Greg's father is killed in a fire in Saginaw. Greg struggles to cope with these dual tragedies. He comes to terms with the loss of his captain, but has greater difficulty surmounting his father’s influence on his life. The title is a metaphor for the life of Greg Kowalski, a nineteen-year-old searching for his place in life. One Foot in the Black is a phrase used to describe a position on the fireline, which is next to an area already burned ("the black"). It is both the most dangerous place - close to the flames, and the safest place - a zone into which escape is possible. The title is a metaphor for the life of Greg Kowalski, a nineteen year searching for safety and comfort.

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