It's Up 2 You!

It's Up 2 You! is a digital comic book about healthy choices for healthy living, created by ASM's Head of Community Engagement Lisa Falk with artist/educator Ryan Huna Smith (Chemehuevi/Navajo).

Lisa Falk, ASM head of community engagement

Lisa Falk

Ryan Huna Smith (Chemehuevi/Navajo)

Ryan Huna Smith

Download a pdf of the comic book here.

 

Cover of the "It's Up 2 You!" comic book

 

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Tohono O'odham

Front inside cover the "It's Up 2 You!" comic book

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Page 1. The setting is Tucson, Arizona. Teenager, Brandon, is sitting around his house drinking soda and eating junk food, with his friend Tomas. He complains that he's tired and that his legs often go numb.

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Tohono O'odham

 

Page 2. Tomas thinks others are crazy for playing basketball and riding bikes. Brandon says he wishes he weren't so tired because he'd like to do those activities.

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Tohono O'odham

Page 3. Brandon remembers he used to enjoy playing ball at the recreation center but continues to eat handfuls of chips with Tomas.

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Tohono O'odham

Page 4. Enter Brandon's neighbor Samantha on a skateboard. Tomas thinks she's cute.

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Tohono O'odham

 

Page 5. Samantha is active and a really good skateboarder. She chides the boys about eating too much junk food.

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Tohono O'odham

Page 6. Samantha asks the boys to come with her to the skate park, but they don't want to. They say they are too busy.

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Tohono O'odham

Page 7. The boys haven't seen much of Samantha lately because she takes care of her mom, who is suffers from diabetes. The boys discuss this while continuing to drink soda.

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Tohono O'odham

 

Page 8. They boys turn their attention to raiding the refrigerator for more soda and junk food.

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Tohono O'odham

Page 9. They continue to sit on the couch playing video games. Brandon starts to get sleepy.

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Page 10. Tomas leaves to go home. Brandon falls asleep.

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Tohono O'odham

 

Page 11. It's 1:02 a.m. The sleepy youth goes to bed, still thinking about the earlier conversation about diabetes. He soon begins to dream.

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Tohono O'odham

Page 12 shows the sleeping Brandon floating into a dream land.

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Page 13. Brandon finds himself in unfamiliar surroundings and meets an elder sitting cross-legged in front of him. He does not know the elder but the man knows him and calls him by his name and tells him he has been following an unhealthy path.

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Tohono O'odham

 

Page 14. The elder tells Brandon that too many of their people, the Tohono O'odham, have been dying from diabetes and that this wasn't always so. Brandon is still confused.

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Tohono O'odham

Page 15. The elder tells Brandon their people used to grow and eat health foods such as corn, beans, squash, and melons. That the used to stay active playing games like toka. And that they used to communicate between villages by running.

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Tohono O'odham

Page 16. The elder tells Brandon that today being sedentary in front of televisions and computers and eating bad food like chips, fries, burgers, and sodas is killing their people.

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Tohono O'odham

 

Page 17. Brandon is beginning to realize that the path he is on is leading him to diabetes.

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Tohono O'odham

Page 18. Brandon envisions the complications of diabetes: nerve damage, blindness, high blood pressure, stroke, and eventually, death.

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Tohono O'odham

Page 19. Brandon awakens from his dream and texts Tomas, asking if he wants to go to the skate park with him. There they see Samantha who is working on a new trick.

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Tohono O'odham

 

Page 20. Samantha shows the boys the new trick she's been working on.

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Page 21. Samantha continues to showing her skateboarding skills. They boys are impressed.

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Page 22. The boys are inspired and tell Samantha that they will be coming to the skate park more often, starting tomorrow.

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Audio Credits

Voices
Dakota Encinas (Tohono O'odham Tomas)
Gene Enis (Tohono O'odham Elder)
Celestino Fernandez (Spanish Elder, English Elder)
Deron Lopez (Tohono O'odham Brandon, English Brandon)
Shaina Ortega (Tohono O'odham Samantha)
David Pierce (Spanish Brandon, English Tomas)
Betel Nubes (Spanish Samantha, English Samantha)
Danny Varas-Nelson (Spanish Tomas)

Translations
Lois Liston (Tohono O'odham)
Janice Ramon (Tohono O'odham)
Rachel Rivera Paz (Spanish)

Sound Recording and Editing
Landon Wallis, Ha:san Studios, Tucson, AZ