Express Yourself!

What do you hope for? What is hope? How can we instill more hope in ourselves and others? Asya Gonzalez, Katelyn Darrow, Maria Wong, Zahra Hasanain, and Brigitte Jia offer variations on the theme of hope. You’ll hear about how volunteering with a charity offers hope to those less fortunate, books with themes of hanging on to hope, how to heal from the inside out with hope, and the association of hope and art. Personal perspectives, youthful insights, and phenomenal passion is our gift of hope to you. Offer hope to others and you’ll find it in yourself.

Imagination is the inspiration for ingenuity. Asya Gonzalez and Katelyn Darrow host an invigorating conversation with author, lawyer, translator, and programmer, Ken Liu, about his debut novel, The Grace of Kings, the first in a silk punk epic fantasy series. Zahra Hasanian reads the chapter, The Gift of Imagination from Cynthia Brian’s book, Be the Star You Are!® 99 Gifts for Living, Loving, Laughing, and Learning to Make a Difference to glean the importance of parents encouraging the wild imaginations of children. Brigitte Jia explores the links between art and imagination, specifically with abstraction. Don’t play it safe in life. Allow yourself the time to dream, to look up at the stars, and to believe in the unbelievable. We are never too old to invent a playful approach to living. Imagination is the beginning of reality.

You can dream, and you can plan, but faith is the crucial catalyst that creates the reality. Cynthia Brian We can exist without faith, but we can’t live without it. What is faith? How do we find it? How do we keep it? Hosts Asya Gonzalez and Brigitte Gia discuss the gripping, coming of age, and engaging story in the book, Queen of Water, with Book Smart Reporter, Maria Wong. The conversation highlights how even through terrible, heart and spirit breaking conditions one can be faithful, strong, and survive. Dani Wong’s story, The Gift of Faith from Cynthis Brian’s book, Be the Star You Are!® for Teens is read and analyzed by Asya showing us how even in the darkest times, faith is a beacon of light. In Art Attack, the hosts tackle the role of faith in creating great art, despite setbacks and criticisms. “Faith invigorates our souls, energizes our minds and shapes our dreams.” Dani Wong

Charlie Brown, Lucy, and Peanuts are alive and well! Hosts Brigitte Jia and Zahra Hasanian interview Hadley Belle Miller, the voice of Lucy, in the new peanuts movie. They also read Joel Goodman’s story, The Gift of Humor, from Cynthia Brian’s book, Be the Star You Are!® for Teens and talk about what constitutes humor. In Hope Heals, Zahra shows us the healing effects of laughter. Instead of from “grim and bear it” adopt an attitude of “grin and share it.” Laughter and humor are the best medicine. http://www.peanutsmovie.com/

Being a volunteer for Be the Star You Are! 501 c3 charity offers major benefits to the individual. Hosts Jennifer Lee, Zahra Hasanian and Courtney Cheng reminisce about how they have grown as people because of their involvement. As hosts and reporters of Express Yourself!™, they have learned to be spontaneous, timely, and prepared as they interview guests. You’ll hear about the early years of this teen radio broadcast, how to be grateful for all the little things in life, and plans for a healthy and happy Thanksgiving. Reporter Asya Gonzalez credits Express Yourself!™ with helping her to win her national award as one of America’s top teen entrepreneurs as she runs her design business, Stinky Feet Gurlz. Make a donation today to Be the Star You Are!® charity at http://www.bethestaryouare.org/donate.htm. It’s obvious that gratitude works. Be grateful and enjoy a happy Thanksgiving!

What is the meaning of care, and how do you heal both inside and out? Hosts Brigitte Zia and Zahra Hasanain read from Be the Star You Are!® for Teens the chapter, The Gift of Healing by prominent physical therapist, Arlyn Van Dyke about his childhood accident that lead to him becoming a healer. They then travel across the pond to the Emerald Isle with a fascinating interview with author of The Summer King, Orla Melling. Melling’s books of young adult fantasy weave spiritual themes with high adventure in the tradition of her favourite author, C.S. Lewis. Her bestselling series The Chronicles of Faerie was listed among the American Library Association’s Top Ten Fantasy Books for Youth and Top Ten Youth Books for the Environment. Art can be very calming and serene and in our last segment, Art Attack reporter, Brigitte shows us the power of healing art.Each and every one of us harbors a doctor within. Heal thyself!

What is the meaning of joy, and what is true happiness in life? Hosts Brigitte Jia and Caiseen Kelly investigate cheerfulness. They read the chapter, The Gift of Happiness by MJ Ryan from the book, Be the Star You Are!® for TEENS written by Cynthia Brian. Health Rap reporter Alex Pawlakos brings the research indicating that happiness strengthens our immune system, combats disease, disability, while reducing stress. Zahra Hasanaian, our Hope Heals reporter discusses the importance of passion for a truly happy life. If you want to live long and blissfully, think happy. Pharrell Williams has it right-happiness is the truth.

Skeletons, pumpkins, and ghosts! Oh my! It’s Halloween and the favorite holiday of our hosts Asya Gonzalez and Caiseen Kelly. After a fun discussion about creating costumes and childhood pranks, Art Attack Reporter, Brigitte Jia, takes us back in history to discover how Halloween came about. Special guest is Disney star, Sophie Reynolds. Sophie Reynolds is one of the newest members of the Disney family as the sweet and fun-loving ‘Ashley’ on “Gamer’s Guide to Pretty Much Everything” with Cameron Boyce. She also talks about her upcoming Halloween movie to be shot in Canada. Make this a spooktacular Halloween. Be safe and have a scary night!

Remember Kermit, the Frog moaning about the difficulty of being green? In today’s show, host Asya Gonzalez looks at what it means to be green in a variety of ways. She kicks off the program reading the chapter, The Gift of Green by Cynthia Brian from the book, Be the Star You Are!® for TEENS and follows up with numerous ways to be pro-active stewards of our earth. Economics Tune-Up Reporter, Alex Pawlakos looks at being environmentally astute from the viewpoint of our wallets. Save the environment and save cash. “Go green to save green.” Our special guest, Good Morning America producer, Mary Pflum Peterson, shares her love of Kermit with her compassionate and eye opening memoir, White Dresses, an exploration of a complex family history. She discusses her deep bond with her intelligent mother, a former nun, and gives us a peek into the underlying ailment of hoarding. "Every green tree is far more glorious than if it were made of gold and silver.”

Individuality is more important than imitation. But how can you express your individuality? Hosts Asya Gonzalez and Brigitte Jia talk about how teens can find their true identity. They read the chapter, the Gift of Individuality by Cynthia Brian, from the book, Be the Star You Are!® for TEENS which focuses on marching to the tune of your own drum. Author of more than 50 books, Elizabeth Lenhard is interviewed for her newest book, Flirt-Our Song. Elizabeth has always been a full-time writer starting at a newspaper then moving to ghost writing and her own books. She advises people who want to write to just write, be unique, and not worry about getting published. Brigitte excites us with her Art Attack segment focusing on amazing examples of individuality in the history of art, including The School of Athens and Rafael. Your actions and decisions are powerful, and impact both you and the people around you. Be proud of yourself and your individuality, and remember that you are a star!

What is friendship and how do we create life long relationships? Hosts Caiseen Kelly and Brigitte Jia discuss the meaning of real friendship. The Gift of Friends by Erica Miner from the book Be the Star You Are!® for Teens is read with tips on how to be a friend. The ladies then interview author, Erin Bow with her newest YA science fiction novel, The Scorpion Rules, that reveals how friends help one another survive. In Art Attack, Brigitte shares information on how movements in art were begun because of the friendship between friends, including Impressionism and Cubism. “Choose your friends wisely. Then be there for each other. That is a gift that has no price: the gift of a lifetime.”

What is fortitude and do you have the strength to keep on keeping on? New host Brigitte Jia examines fortitude for a full hour beginning with reading the Gift of Fortitude by Cynthia Brian from the book, Be the Star You Are! for TEENS. In our 2nd and 3rd segment, Brigitte introduces Rachel Caine, the New York Times, USA Today, and #1 internationally bestselling author of more than 45 novels that span the categories of horror, suspense, urban fantasy, science fiction, media tie-in, historical, and young adult. Rachel discusses her first novel in The Great Library series, INK AND BONE, while giving insights on how to get started as a teen writer. In Art Attack, Brigitte profiles artists with immense courage, who faced obstacles and challenges to complete their works and maintain their craft. What does Fortitude mean? Fortitude entails strength, guts, resilience, courage, staying power, stamina, endurance, and determination.

When someone does you wrong, it can be hard to forgive. Without forgiveness, we can’t move on. Host Asya Gonzalez reads the chapter, The Gift of Forgiveness, from both books, Be the Star You Are!® for Teens and Be the Star You Are!® 99 Gifts for Living, Loving, Laughing, and Learning to Make a Difference where we learn that time spent blaming and complaining is totally wasted. We are the winners, not the losers, when we forgive and let go because it means that we can also forgive ourselves. Co-host Caiseen Kelly joins Asya to interview mega best selling author Mary Nethery about why she writes about forgiveness in her forthcoming novel, Nabbed in New Orleans. Mary Nethery deals with a band of friends on an adventure in post Katrina New Orleans in which they discover love, friendship, and find forgiveness. Finally, our teen hosts discuss how forgiveness has moved them forward in their own lives and how teens can embrace this virtue. Forgive and forge ahead.

What is financial literacy and why is it important to understand starting at a young age? According to the dictionary, financial literacy is the ability to understand how money works in the world; how you earn it, how you manage it, how you invest it, how you use it to help others aka donating. Producer, Cynthia Brian, sits in the hosting seat to interview teen reporters Zahra Hasanian, Eric Pawlakos, and Asya Gonzalez on what financial literacy means to them, how they are learning, and what are the benefits. The chapter on financial literacy penned by Heather Brittany is read from Be the Star You Are!® for Teens advocating the importance of earning a living to live a life. • • “A penny saved is a penny earned.” Benjamin Franklin

The word “work” often has a negative connotation. Hosts Caiseen Kelly and Asya Gonzalez look at the “whys” of working hard to achieve goals. They interview award -winning author Brooks Olbrys about his book series, The Adventures of Blue Ocean Bob. This colorful and inspiring early chapter book series provides young readers with an introduction to timeless principles of achievement. Brooks encourages us to follow our hearts and passions to discover our purpose, then, work will be fulfilling and joyful. Reporter of Book It!, Courtney Cheng, discusses the novel, Motherland, a story about a German mother caught in the middle of WWII and what working meant to her family. Having work could simply be your own way of keeping yourself busy, your mind sharp, your body active. Asya Gonzalez tells how she became a child entrepreneur and how the hard work led to her being awarded one of five top teen entrepreneurs of 2015 and winning the Dan Danner Leadership Award providing an additional $10,000