Lions don't eat vegetables....

I am conflicted.

So I am STILL illustrating "Marco and Scarlett's Vegetable Venture" for the Womens' Health Clinic. I feel like it will do good things. As a vegetarian, I'm down with promoting vegetables (even carrots and especially spinach). And if I end up impressing upon young minds that lions wear pants and eat leafy greens, what of it?

Dilemma 1: So Grace's four-year-old nephew comes by while I'm working on my illustrations and immediately looks at my pictures and comments: "Lions don't eat vegetables." Yeah, well.

Dilemma 2: I was also having a conversation with my mother about the relationship between the quality of illustrations vs. child-friendliness. Conclusion: The fact that I am drawing poor quality illustrations of lions in sun-dresses may actually be extremely appealing to young children, despite the absence of aesthetic stimulation.

Dilemma 3: When I worked for Discovery Creek last summer the most-requested book was "The Big Golden Book of Cavemen." This book was chalk full of graphic depictions of hairy Neanderthals slaughtering and eating zebras and mammoths.

Conclusion:

Children want this:

Not this:

Look, whatever happens, Neanderthals and aesthetic implications aside, eat your vegetables!