I’ve always loved to read. As kids, my brothers and I would stay up late, hiding under the covers with flashlights, reading anything we could find—cookbooks, the World Book Encyclopedia, Zane Grey, Louis L’Amour, Nancy Drew, Agatha Christie. It became a sort of contest: who could read the most, who remembered the most, and who could apply what they’d learned. But it was more than a competition. We genuinely wanted to know things—to learn, to share stories, to understand the world and the people (and animals) in it.

That love of learning and storytelling has colored my art from the very beginning. I’ve always wanted my work to tell a story, to invite curiosity, to carry meaning beyond the surface layer.

One of my lifelong favorites is Mark Twain. His work is funny, insightful, and sometimes piercingly serious. I especially love his short stories, and one that’s stuck with me is The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County. I won’t retell it here, but let’s just say: ever since I read it, I’ve had a soft spot for frogs. They’ve hopped into my art in all kinds of ways—from naturalistic designs to playful ones, or the Frog Footman in Alice in Wonderland or Disney’s The Princess and the Frog.

And somehow, it all traces back to Twain and that clever little frog. Fittingly, today, May 13th is Jumping Frog Day, a celebration if you will of Mark Twain and frogs in general! That makes me smile—and remember those nights reading by flashlight. Happy Jumping.

God Bless,