In this episode of Sacred Lessons, host Mike de la Rocha sits down with Memo Torres, Director of Engagement and multimedia journalist at the James Beard Award–winning L.A. Taco, for a moving conversation about storytelling, community, and the emotional responsibility of bearing witness. From his roots as a third-generation landscaper to becoming one of LAs’ most trusted narrative voices, Memo shares how writing and cultural reporting can serve as medicine for working-class and immigrant communities. Together, Mike and Memo explore the sacred role of the storyteller holding pride and grief at once, documenting truth without exploitation, and finding humanity in moments of crisis.

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In this episode of Sacred Lessons, host Mike de la Rocha sits down with Isaac Zamora, youth advocate and family therapist for a number of youth-serving organizations. Rooted in Chumash and Chicano heritage, Isaac’s journey from incarceration to higher education at Santa Barbara City College, UCLA, and Pepperdine University reveals how culture, kinship, and redemption can turn shame into healing. Together, Mike and Isaac explore education as liberation, the power of community healing, and the importance of walking with, rather than apart from, those impacted by the system.

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In part two of this special Sacred Lessons episode, host Mike de la Rocha sits down with his longtime mentor, poet, and cultural leader Luis J. Rodríguez. Together, they explore how mentorship, purpose, and creativity can turn pain into power and how our stories carry the seeds of healing and belonging.

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