Why is California called the Golden State?

California is called the Golden State not because of the gold found at Sutter’s Mill in 1848, but because winter rains make the hills green until the dry air of summer turns them a golden hue.

Now she is consigning her memories to a graphic novel — A Hole in the Heart — that tells the story of what happened next after Beth had Down’s syndrome. That’s because, says Henny, the years following Bern’s arrival have not been impossible as she believed they would be — and she wants others, who might one day find themselves in a similar situation, to know that life will not be over.