I grew up with a very Huck Finn childhood. My mother was a music teacher and my father wanted to be a teacher but ended up leaving college. He grew up very poor and did not have the funds to keep up with his studies. Both of my parents valued play, exploring. We lived outside, mucking round in the dirt. Nature was our playground. They also instilled in me a love of reading and writing. Before bed we always had read, write, draw time. It gave us time to decompress. Time for some quite introspection. Its those experiences I want to pass on to children.

• Education: Graduate degree