Just Calm Down.

So I used to do a comic called "Bob Violent" in college, and this is essentially him. I had done this one page comic of him getting ready for bed, with no dialog or captions. I had it lying around and then some time later I wrote the poem. How I ever thought they would go together, I don't know. But in my head, they do. It's called Just Calm Down. It's a scan from paper artwork, and I'm not totally happy with some of the staging and the quality of the drawing in general, so I'll probably redo this in Photoshop.

Two short poems that go together.

Prayer of the Conquerors

On black, heaving horses

We trample their corn and their dusty paths

We storm their huts and smash their baskets

And put to the sword their bloody fruit

Ours are their labors

The seeds in their bellies

The fates that befall them

And their every morning sun.

Prayer of the Vanquished

We bare our palms and our backs to you

And long to forget our names

Our homes are your homes

And we sleep under your stars.

We ache from carrying our chains

With resignation we suckle your young

And watch your mighty lungs fill with air

Because we must not look into your eyes.