Back in 1965, in a small room in the Army recruiting offices of Manchester, NH, I and several other young men raised our right hands and took an oath. In that oath we promised to defend the both the people and the constitution of the United States of America. I was 18, Vietnam was raging overseas, and I was taking a vow based on my feelings and family history. You see, my father served in World War II as part of an artillery outfit in the South Pacific. When my brothers and I grew up, we would pester him to tell us his war stories. Of course, what I recall is he always told us funny anecdotes about the mischief he and his buddies would get into. It was obvious he would omit any accounts of loneliness or terror that are part and parcel of any combat experience.

My parents brought us up to love America.
This upbringing was reinforced by our school teachers who taught us the history of the land and why it is a republic unlike any other in the history of the world. I grew up a patriot. Even in the comics I reads like DC’s OUR ARMY AT WAR which featured the gruff Sgt.Rock and the men of Easy Company. To writer Robert Kanigher and artist Joe Kubert’s credits, they never glossed over the horrors of war in their stories of bravery and courage under fire. Thus when I signed up, I had no illusions about what I was getting myself into. Still, part of me has always believed that if you are blessed, as all Americans are, to live in such a great country,
then you have an obligation…a duty if you will, to
serve that very ideal.

So on this day, we take time to reflect on those men and women who loved America so much,
they put their own lives on the line. From Valley Forge to Gettysburg, to the beaches of
Normandy, Pork Chop Hill and the bloody Tet Offensive, they fought and they died for this
grand democracy, for this land governed “…of the people and by the people.” They died for your freedom and mine.

Today another generation of servicemen and women are in Afghanistan and Iraq doing that exact same thing. They are honoring their oath, the are, with their hard work, sweat, tears and even their lives, securing our liberties.
God bless them and bring them home safely..when the job is done. God bless America and all her veterans, those who came back and those who did not. We will never forget.

Well, Rich Woodall and I are half-way through our first session of the Paperback Bazaar’s School for Sequential Graphics. It has been such a fun experience for both us and our students are simply amazing. Above is a page done by Josh Florence. Josh wants to write comics and he has the talent for it. Still, part of our philosophy is to give both our writers and artists a feel for all the components that make up a comic. Thus Josh was assigned a script to do break downs for and he did so with panache and flair. When Rich and I saw the humor of his pages, we were delighted.
Josh has a bright future in this game and it has been a joy to help guide him on that path.

I also want to thank all you airmen who took the time to write both wishing me a Happy 59th
Birthday last week, but also to express your concern over my injuries suffered a few days prior when I took a nose dive off a ladder and sprained my right ankle. So here we are, eight days later, and believe me, it still hurts like
hell! Oh yeah, but I do walk on it and continue to keep both cold and heat on it during regular intervals. The ankle itself seems to be healing
okay, but I know I’ve torn some calf ligaments
as well and that is simply going to take lots of time, and limping..ha..before the leg is back to normal. All your well thoughts and prayers are deeply appreciated.

Finally, I’ve added five no pieces of artwork to the gallery section this week. They all resolve around a character I created named
Satin Wei. She’s a jewel thief and is brought to
visual life by penciller Gonzalo Martinez, of Chile, and inker Terry Staats of Texas. I’ve a short story and a mini-series in the works featuring her under the title SATIN’S WAYS.
Stay tuned for more as things develop.

Okay, got to go put the leg up and get some ice on it. Have a great week, Ron, over and out.