Why I LOVE Comics

Amidst the 52SECRETCRISISCIVILFINALINVASIONWARS, I forgot to mention something:

I WILL ALWAYS LOVE COMICS.

And, for one I don't always love what's going on in them but the actual reading of comics. Every time I hold a comic book, I am reminded of something these folded bits of colored paper had a part in showing me: love.

The other day, I was telling someone that I never knew that I was poor until someone with money pointed it out to me. Was I ashamed? A little bit. Not so much because of a lack of money but the knowing that a comic a week at fifty cents a piece was possibly taking something away from somewhere else. I decided to give up comics. One day, my mother noted that she hadn't seen me with a comic for a while. I told her the reason why.

The next day, a brand new comic was sitting at the foot of my bed. I remember having this sense of excitement at seeing something that made me so happy sitting right there waiting for me.

For me!

As much as I wanted it, I knew I didn't need it. I took the comic back to my mother and asked her to take it back. This fifty cent comic cost too much.

I'll never forget what happened next. She just looked at me and said, "No, it belongs to you." I'm sure I hugged her before and after this but this is the one time I really remember how awesome it was to hug someone and truly feel it.

Every time I pick up a comic and take it home, I know that it belongs to me, knowing it's a special gift given back to me by someone even more special.