FUNERAL

It didn’t occur to me until this week how coincidentally timed this chapter of SF is.  Unless I miss my guess, today is the 11th anniversary of my own father’s funeral.  He died on the 23rd of November.  The story of all that is amazing, funny, tragic, epic, inspiring and defining (for me).  Yes, I did slip in “funny.”

I guess it shouldn’t come as a shock that I find that there is humor in the cicumstances and events that surround death.  I’d even go so far as to say that I think it’s IMPORTANT to find something to laugh at in those times.  Death can be time of joy.  It can be a celebration.  It should be, I think.

Because here’s one thing death isn’t:  it’s not scary.  And yet…that’s the thing it most often gets associated with: fear.  Whether it’s the dread of the unknown or the morbid way that some co-opt the grisly trappings of actual death in order to define themselves or even their aesthtic, death, I think, often doesn’t get a fair shake.

I think death can be a time of clarity for those left living and a time of peace for those who have passed on.  Those just aren’t things I associate darkness and gloom with.

Just stuff I’ve been thinking about.  I think that’s enough for now.

Guest Strip Reminder

Don’t forget that the call for guest strips is still out there!  I’m taking a week off at the end of next month and I’m looking for quality strips to fill in.  Fame and (not so much) fortune can be yours, if you’re a cartoonist.  I’ve already gotten two excellent entries, but there’s room for more.

Deadline: Dec. 22.  Email to: heasley (at) th3rdworld.com

Next Week:

We go back in time. Waaaaaaaay back as Cap reminesences about the good ol’ days and strange light appears in the sky.

Oh, and…HAPPY THANKSGIVING.  And, if you don’t live in the U.S., HAPPY THANKSGIVING!