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The Journey

My high school had the motto “Thinkers and Problem Solvers.” Being the high schoolers that we were, we would say it sort of mockingly, but the saying has stuck with me through my adult life. The first iteration of this book was originally a poem that I wrote for Ms. Brown’s class at the Air Force Academy Prep School. My time in the military provided an immense amount of opportunities, but I struggled to find creative outlets.

When Ms. Brown allowed me to be artistic, I drew inspiration from my frustrations with not being challenged creatively. I remembered an interaction from my 5th-grade science class when my teacher was being bombarded with “what if” questions by us rambunctious students. She yelled in response, “No more ‘what if’ questions.” I can still feel the energy get sucked out of the room immediately.

I remember a line here and there, but I lost the original poem I performed for the school. The attempt to rewrite it didn’t happen until some six years after the original version while I was coaching a group of 10-year-olds in Hermosa Beach. I was inspired to expand the piece far beyond the originally assigned line count limit. I continued to make iterations, and after sharing it with a close friend, I was challenged to turn it into a picture book.