Tuesday Tidbits: Childhood Everlasting

I started re-reading my Calvin and Hobbes books. If you have never heard of them, it is a comic strip created by Bill Waterson about a young boy and his stuffed tiger. There is no doubt in Calvin’s mind that Hobbes is real. As a reader, there is no doubt either.

Along with the shenanigans (i.e. trouble) they get into, there are deep philosophical conversations that you would not expect from a young child, much less a tiger. Calvin’s imagination paired with Hobbes’ practicality if the perfect balance between impulse and restraint—well maybe not perfect, as impulse wins out quite often.

It’s funny that a comic strip can go on for years, the characters never aging, and we don’t give it a second thought. Like The Simpsons, who’s children are still in elementary school after 30+ years. Not to mention Kerney, who has been there even longer. I suppose it’s like when we were young, growing up seemed so very far away.

I don’t read cartoons or cartoon strips very often anymore, but cartoons like The Far Side, Bloom County, and Calvin and Hobbes bring back memories of sitting with my sister, laughing so hard there were tears.

Thank you, Bill, Gary, and Berkeley.

Do you have any favorites?

-Leon

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Leon Stevens is a multi-genre author, composer, guitarist, songwriter, and an artist, with a Bachelor of Music and Education. He published his first book of poetry, Lines by Leon: Poems, Prose, and Pictures in January 2020, followed by a book of original classical guitar compositions, Journeys, and a short story collection of science fiction/post-apocalyptic tales called The Knot at the End of the Rope and Other Short Stories. His newest publications are the novella trilogy, The View from Here, which is a continuation of one of his short stories, and a new collection of poetry titled, A Wonder of Words.

My new book page: http://books.linesbyleon.com/

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