This is my favorite quote from Henry Beston, from his well-known work The Outermost House. Western society tends to see Homo sapiens as being superior to all other life forms, when in fact we are just one of many beautiful, intricate, and ultimately ephemeral species to spend time on this planet. Beston’s quote captures that sentiment for me, and I would be remiss if I didn’t dedicate at least one comic to these words.

I don’t have any particular reason why I chose a Roosevelt elk (Cervus canadensis roosevelti) to go with the quote, other than I just felt like drawing one. I have a tendency to make my long-nosed mammals look too horse- or dog-like, so I wanted to really work on capturing the contours of the elk himself. Maybe someday I’ll be brave enough to try a front-facing view (foreshortening!) but for now, I’m happy with this.

Also, this guy is a sticker (without the text) at my Redbubble store.