June 7, 2012 - I feel the key to any working relationship is communication. Obviously, Aaron and Ellie have a lot of work cut out for them, but if they work on it, which they can if they choose to, I think it can work.

Unfortunately, I don't think not speaking up is a problem facing only fictional characters. A lot of people have trouble finding their voice, and it's depressing and scary that a lot of people can find themselves in relationships where they're afraid to talk openly about their feelings. Despite the difficulty, I encourage everyone to fight any inclination to remain silent when feelings come up. It isn't easy, but if you're in a relationship with someone, I think you want that person to have a level of respect for you that should include their being open to listening to your feelings and showing compassion and understanding towards those feelings.

Anyway, I'll definitely be talking about this a bit more with tomorrow's comic. But I also want to add that I saw this the other day, which is a yet another depressing statement of the representation of women in media (but I maybe shouldn't talk myself (least I got Emily's name on this)).

-D