Part 1 of my "Consoling" series. I was RELENTLESSLY bullied throughout high school, particularly in my Junior year, I was verbally and physically assaulted, pushed down the stairs, kids burped in my face and screamed in my ear and many other horrible things that happened to me in which I broke down crying. My Junior year also happened to be the same year that The Fox and the Hound was re-released on DVD for its 25th anniversary and when The Fox and the Hound 2 came out. I watched it for the first time in forever and I fell in love with it, and it ignited my affinity for foxes. Tod is the one Disney character I can relate to the most, but Vixey really speaks to me more than any other character, Disney or non-Disney.

Anyway, I often imagine I’m my 16 year-old self out in the Forest with Vixey and lament to her about my misery in school, and she would comfort me and assure me that I’m not alone and that she and my friends will always be there for me. I just had to illustrate this scene, and I was awfully hesitant about posting it because this is a very personal work of art, but I remember a Calvin and Hobbes Sunday strip where they’re walking in the woods and Calvin says how animals make more sense than people do, they listen to your problems, comfort you when you’re sad and always accept you for who you are and all that they ask for in return is kindness. That’s one of the reasons why Bill Watterson is one of my inspirations and why I think Calvin and Hobbes is the greatest comic strip ever made, Mr. Watterson, if you’re reading this, I salute you. Here's the perfect song to go with this artwork https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w0ZHlp6atUQ