This is the fifth in a series of five posts about comics that made an impact on me growing up. I'm not talking about anything I worked on as a professional, but books I bought that influenced me as a creator and as a person. Somehow I wound up with this book. Honestly, I can't remember where I bought it. It might have been when my aunts took me on a trip to Hawaii, because I have some memory of reading it on a plane.
I always loved Uncle Scrooge. He was one of the few non-superhero books I unabashedly enjoyed.[image src="http://thomz.com/blogall/wp-content/uploads/2014/06/unbclescrooge.jpg" align="left" border="image_border" link="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0890875103/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=0890875103&linkCode=as2&tag=thozahartstu-20&linkId=B52RLWCML6WSZYUK" alt="" title="" lightbox="false" ]
Barks and Scrooge instilled some pretty important lessons in me. The virtues of hard work, of risk-taking and innovating, and of traveling. But no story stuck with me as much as Go Slowly the Sands of Time.
Scrooge feels old. He wants to be rejuvenated, to be young again. He, Donald and the Nephews go to Khunza and wind up talking to the oldest citizen, the royal treasurer, who has the same love of acquiring and creating money as Scrooge. They realize Scrooge is just as old, or even older, then their ancient treasurer.
"The secret of long life," the ancient one pontificated, "is to be happy with your work. Your daily toil has to be your whole reason for living."
I love being a cartoonist. I love being a storyteller. I love what I do, and the places it takes me and the things it lets me do. It is my favorite thing in the world and the thing that, without question, I was put on this planet to do.
I don't act my age. And I often hear that I don't look it, either. I think I'm doing something right.