Celebrating America's Multicultural Landscape

Cynthia Brian

5 hours ago

5 min read

MIRACLE MOMENTS®

“The soul is dyed the color of its thoughts. Think only on those things that are in line with your principles and can bear the light of day. The content of your character is your choice. Day by day, what you choose, what you think, and what you do is who you become. Your integrity is your destiny ... It is the light that guides your way.”

~ Heraclitus

A MESSAGE from Founder/Director, CYNTHIA BRIAN Cynthia Brian

This past week, I worked on a television show with a cast and crew from multinational backgrounds. During short breaks, the discussions veered towards how beautiful America is because we are a melting pot of races, cultures, languages, religions, and ideologies. Beyond Native Americans, we are all immigrants, blending our differences into a shared identity. Some describe America as a delicious salad bowl or a colorful mosaic where we influence one another while retaining our heritages and living together to create a unique country.

When I was 15, my school selected me to be a foreign exchange student to Mexico. Growing up on our farm, I worked in the fields daily and had never left California. After three months living in Guadalajara, I returned speaking Spanish and with an immense admiration for Mexican traditions. At 18, I was chosen as a teenage ambassador to the Netherlands. After 18 months, I returned to the farm speaking Dutch and the desire to incorporate my multicultural experiences throughout European travel into my American dreams. I couldn’t wait to travel again to foreign lands, and fortunately, U.C.L.A. offered me the opportunity to spend my junior year abroad at the University of Bordeaux, France. While I was away, my family hosted an exchange student from Japan who spoke no English and had never been to a farm. I came home speaking French, and they greeted me in Japanese. My love for our big, beautiful, multicultural world expanded exponentially.

Over the years, I have traveled to every continent except Antarctica, meeting people from every walk of life. What I have discovered is that no matter the color of our skin, the language we speak, the food we eat, the religion we practice, or the beliefs we hold, as humans, we all have the same desires and needs…to love, to be loved, and to live with dignity, kindness, and integrity.

The quote by Heraclitus resonates with me because I believe integrity is the fuel that guides us through our days. We can choose to be kind and neighborly, or we can choose to discriminate and be racist.

We all live in America together. We love America. We welcome newcomers with character and integrity as neighbors and friends.

Let us celebrate our diversity and our multicultural landscape with joy and pride.

Cynthia Brian

Founder/Executive Director

Be the Star You Are!®

PO Box 376

Moraga, California 94556

https://www.BetheStarYouAre.org

https://www.BTSYA.org

https://greatnonprofits.org/org/be-the-star-you-are-inc

DONATE: https://www.paypal.com/fundraiser/charity/1504

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SCAM ALERT

If you receive an email from cynthiastarstyleradio@gmail.com inviting you to be a guest on my radio show, StarStyle®-Be the Star You Are!®, BLOCK the sender, as this is NOT legit. I DO NOT have a Gmail account. Whoever is doing this is asking for money to participate. Those emails are from scammers. DO NOT RESPOND to those emails.

FIGHT FOR THE CURE

Keerthi Eraniyan has been a volunteer with Be the Star You Are!® since the 7th grade. She is also a reporter and host of Express Yourself Teen Radio. This week she is interviewed as a guest on the program about her nonprofit, Fight for the Cure, where she is founder and executive director of the nation’s only youth-led organization focused solely on cancer education for ESL and multilingual immigrant populations. Fight for the Cure, through multilingual workshops and interactive educational materials, aims to educate young bilingual and English learner children about cancer, cell biology, and chronic disease prevention. BTSYA is proud that Keerthi is helping others with her newest endeavor. Find out more: https://linktr.ee/fightforthecureorg and Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/fightforthe.cure. Listen to the radio interview at https://sites.libsyn.com/560220/child-cancer-education-plus-novelty-in-science

A ROCK GARDEN FOR ALL

by Karen Kitchel

While looking for ways to scatter a little kindness, I discovered the idea of a rock garden for all. All it took was finding a few smooth rocks and painting short, inspirational messages on them.

Behind our house is a lake where walkers often stop to rest on a park bench. The place beneath the bench seemed like the perfect place to plant my little garden. Since I wanted to share the idea with others, I added a simple note, “Take one and/or leave one.”

In just a couple of days, my little garden has not only blossomed, but it has doubled. New rocks appeared with their own messages, while many of the originals found their way into the hands of those strolling by. What started as a few painted rocks has grown into a garden of kindness, which others from many backgrounds are helping to grow.

I’ll never know where those little messages end up, but it is wonderful to know that kindness is being scattered along the way.

Karen Kitchel is the Kindness Coordinator with Be the Star You Are!® charity. She contributed to the book, Be the Star You Are!®, Millennials to Boomers. She volunteers with several organizations that improve others’ lives. Visit www.scaterringkindness.com.

ABOUT BE THE STAR YOU ARE!®

Be the Star You Are!® is an all-volunteer organization that operates through contributions, in-kind donations, and proceeds from fundraising events. Be the Star You Are!® does not receive state or federal funding and is solely dependent on contributions from the community and corporations. Be the Star You Are!® is consistently honored as a TOP NON-PROFIT (https://greatnonprofits.org/org/be-the-star-you-are-inc) by Guidestar and Great Non-Profits.

Be the Star You Are!® supports all ethnicities and has no religious or political agendas or affiliations. Be the Star You Are!® is proud to have been serving the community, country, and world since 1999.

DONATE: https://www.paypal.com/fundraiser/charity/1504

DONATE: https://givebutter.com/BTSYA

“Read, lead, succeed. To be a leader, you must be a reader!” Cynthia Brian

BOOKS AND MERCH

Books: A great way to support Be the Star You Are!® and give a gift that continues to give is to buy books as a donation through our portal. Check out our Book Package: https://www.bethestaryouare.org/book-gift

Amazon Store: Be the Star You Are!® has a book shop on Amazon with the lowest prices available. Check it out at http://www.amazon.com/shops/be_the_star_you_are_charity

Book Reviews: Books read by youth for all ages and honestly reviewed. https://www.bethestaryouare.org/book-reviews

Merch: Find well-made clothing and hats with the Be the Star You Are!® logo at https://www.bonfire.com/store/be-the-star-you-are-merch/. Numerous colors and styles are appropriate for all ages. A percentage of the proceeds benefits Be the Star You Are!®.

OUR RADIO BROADCASTS INSPIRE AND COMMUNICATE

Every week, under the auspices of Be the Star You Are!® charity and produced by StarStyle® Productions, LLC, listeners are encouraged and inspired on our two international radio broadcasts, StarStyle®-Be the Star You Are!® and Express Yourself!™ Teen Radio. StarStyle® is a lifestyle program bringing information and innovative ideas that will help with daily living while Express Yourself!™ is hosted by teens, for teens, with discussions about everything and anything that interests youth today. Both programs are unedited, uncensored, and unapologetically authentic. Listen to both shows on your favorite platforms: iTunes, Spotify, Stitcher, iHeartRadio, etc. as well as our direct sources.