We live in a world riddled with stereotypes and categories designed to box people — in this case, children — into spaces that make it hard to be seen differently. Whether it’s a narrative that paints a Black child as the comic relief sidekick or a movie where someone of East Asian descent is only ever shy and unassuming, these kinds of ideas are the start of conditioning. They teach children who gets to lead, who gets to feel deeply, and who is relegated to a punchline or background role.

My intention with Sheepy™ was to disrupt that — starting with a Black child, but not ending there. Because representation isn't a box to check. It’s a doorway. A mirror. A launchpad. To inspire others to create a world where all kids — especially those often left out of the spotlight — can see themselves as central, magical, worthy, and full of dreams. Not a supporting character. Not a stereotype. The star.

Sheepy himself — pink, fluffy, and still a boy — challenges the widespread belief that even colors are gendered. He invites both children and adults to revisit what colors once were, before the world decided who they “belonged” to. When we were young, colors were a way to express a feeling or capture a moment. They weren’t exclusionary terms.

Goodnight Sheepy may have started as a bedtime story, but Sheepy's dream doesn't end there — his Dreamworld is a soft, sweet rebellion against limitation.

When we expand what’s possible on the page, we expand what’s possible in a child’s mind. And every child deserves that kind of magic.