Daring.

Peter Rabbit was one of the stories I read over and over again. I always connected with Peter. Like Peter, I didn’t’ always listen and dared to do things that I probably wouldn’t do today. When I was seven, I lived in Toronto, Canada. Some boys in the neighborhood and I had discovered a garter snake den, where hundreds of garter snakes gathered together to hibernate for winter. It was fascinating to watch the snakes wriggle and writhe as they emerged into the spring. I might not be quite so daring with snakes today!

Unfinished.

Each year my mom read Nicole’s Birthday at my birthday party. It is about a little French school girl who is a lot like me. This Nicole had a messy drawer full of unfinished projects. I am interested in many things. I often jump from one project to another and have numerous that need to be completed. At this moment I have unfinished manuscripts, patchwork quilts, and mixed media projects.

Adventurous.

Because I lived in many countries that were once part of the British Empire (Canada, Malaysia and The Bahamas), I read books by English authors. My favorite books were written by Enid Blyton. Her book, The Valley of Adventure, tops my best-loved book list. The kids in this book series solved mysteries while exploring different places. Their adventures fascinated me and encourage me to have some of my own. Look for photos from my safari in Tanzania, my hike to see the monarchs overwintering in the mountains of Mexico, my trip to the most southern city in the world to see penguins, and many other adventures elsewhere on this website.

Curious.

Why do some animals curl up? How do elephants communicate? Why do monarchs migrate to Mexico? What are crepuscular animals? Why don’t woodpeckers get headaches when they drill for grubs? These are some of the questions that prompted me to research and write picture book manuscripts. As a child I saved my allowance to buy How and Why books. These books answered some questions, but usually led me to many more. 

Nature Lover.

I love to walk in the woods. The greenness of the trees, the sounds of birds, the quiet meetings with forest animals make my heart happy. This love for nature has grown throughout my life. Since I was ten, my hero has been Jane Goodall. She has influenced my life in all ways. At the moment, I am reading her most recent book, The Book of Hope. Because I led a Roots and Shoots club (Jane Goodall’s youth initiative), I was able to meet Jane Goodall. How
lucky I am!