Henry Durham Lyle, Sr. 1914-2008

HENRY DURHAM LYLE, SR - My DAD!!

My dad passed away today at about 11:00 am this morning. He was 94 years old. I remember the good and the bad things, but I'll tell you ... that man did pretty good raising three wildly divergent and different boys.

I've always been intrigued by the changes in life and society that my dad saw in his life. I mean, movies, airplanes and cars were very new when he was born.

The photo to the right is one of my mom and dad from Christmas of 1955. I would have been 2 years old. My brother Larry would have been 5 and Sandy would have been 8. What a dress, eh?

Anyway, I got to be with dad over the weekend and on Monday for his last really lucid days. I really appreciate that I was able to be there for that.

My dad was sent back to his home in Williston, Florida by Hospice, so he got to die in the home that he lived with my mom in at the end of her life as well. I think that being there made him happier. He was definitely ready to go to the Lord. I know that he missed mom tremendously. They were married for 67 years after all.


The photo to the left is from the summer of 1959 - July to be exact. I was 5. My brother Sandy is behind me - he is 11. My brother Larry is in the back - he is 8. That's my Daddio in those neat-o plaid slippers on the back steps of the house on Oak Street in Jacksonville. 2910 Oak Street to be exact ... again.

Larry has been gone for 13 years now. He died of AIDS in 1994.

Sandy is still here and strong as a horse. It's down to me and him now. I want to acknowledge that my brother was at the bedside for both my mother and my father's passing. I'm glad that they were not alone.

I was getting ready to go back to Florida tomorrow to be with dad, but ... at least I was able to say all my goodbyes on Monday.

I was lucky to have both of my parents for so long. It's just really odd trying to get used to the idea that the Lyle, family of 5, is now down to 2.

Say a brief prayer for every parent and thanks to all for your support.

Coming Soon!!

Well, here I am with some more art - a con sketch from last year's HEROES CON - and no more news about my dad.

Dad is deteriorating rapidly and will probably move up to heaven within a day or two.

I am learning to deal with changes and no parents. Kind of weird, I must say.

My brother and I are not that close, but I do know that I want to have a relationship with him. However, the graphic novel story that I want to do involves both of us, family stuff, and personal stuff for me and I think he may not like what I do with it.

My wife, Sue, says to "write fearlessly" and to not worry about reactions from family or friends.

I will try to remember that.

Summer school starts June 23rd and I am teaching four classes again this year. I need the money and I like how easy the classes are with 8 or less students in each class.

Everyone be good and keep plugging. More tomorrow or Friday. I'll be away from home from Friday on with no access to the internet, so I won't be able to post for awhile after the next couple of day.

Best-
Tom

Promises, PROMISES!!!

All right!
I'm back.
I'm alive.
I will post more often.
I will post art AND pictures.
I will not be a bum.

But ... just to fill you in:
It appears that life marches on.
I have just come back from two days in Jacksonville, Florida where my dad is (or was) living. He went into the hospital on May 29th and is now headed back to his house in Williston, Florida where he and my mom lived for 10 years to be under Hospice care. He is going to die and soon and I will have lost both parents in 6 months. That said, I've had them for a long time. My dad is 94. He regaled us with lots of stories this weekend ... and he had some life confessions. He, however, is fully ready to move on to the afterlife and be with my mom and brother in heaven ... and that's okay.

I'll be fine. I'm sad, but okay. I'm in Savannah until later this week, then I'm driving back down to FL to see my dad before he goes.

On a positive note:
I'll be at HEROES CON in June as a SCAD representative.
Come by and see me there.

The art posted is two pages of my tight roughs from CHICKASAW ADVENTURES #5. That's how tight I work. The originals are 6" x 9" for the actual art area. Small, but proportional to the final page. More to come.

Take care.

Tom

Still Alive!!

Hey all-
To those of you asking about commissions ... I'm not currently doing them. By the summer I may have time. I'm trying to get finished with a huge job before I take on anything.

Sorry to have been so long between posts. I've been really busy with school - teaching at SCAD!

I'm taking on 5 classes for Spring quarter, so I'll likely be fairly unavailable again.

I haven't heard a thing from Marvel or DC in quite a while, so I'm pursuing other options. If they call, terrific. If they don't, life goes on and I can quite enjoy it.

I appreciate all the support since my Mom died in November. I've found out about a friend who has died two years ago (we lost contact with each other) and so I keep getting reminded of my mortality. Darn it.

My health is good. My wife, Sue, is doing great. Savannah is fine. SCAD is terrific. I'll post some new artwork soon.

In the meantime, here's a header I created for one of the Drawing classes I teach. Fun, huh?

See you all soon.

Tom

MERRY CHRISTMAS EVERYONE!!!

Best to everyone for the holidays.

Hope you're all safe and happy.

See you soon.

Tom

JEALOUSY!!!

Wish I were in Japan, too.
Hope you guys had fun.

Tom

My MOM!!!

Well, I finally have to face some death again.
My brother died back in 1994. Now, my mom has died.
She died on November 26th.
I'm okay. I'm very concerned about my dad, but I'll be spending time with him over the holidays.
Say a little prayer for him (and for mom) and I'll be happy.
Thanks for all your support.

Tom