Oh dear, Kristen Bell is even cuter than we imagined. Our October Guest Editor, in all her blonde, preggers, good vibes glory is taking over the pages of The Chalkboard this month and, if it’s possible, she’s funnier, prettier, and more thoughtful than we imagined her to be. We’re hoping that gracing our homepage this month will be as epic a move for her career as a certain animated children’s musical was for her last year – fingers crossed, expectations high – but, any way you slice it, our readers are in for a real treat this month as Kristen doles out thoughtful insights, free voice lessons – both figuratively and literally, shares her favorite items in our new The Shop, and one of the funniest handwritten Q+A’s we’ve ever shared.
October 16th is World Food Day. Hunger and malnutrition, especially where they effects children, are causes close to Kristen’s heart as she talks about below. We love Kristen’s activism in this area, as well as her bold efforts on the other end of the spectrum of children’s issues, that of privacy and security. We’ll be sharing a shoppable collection of our favorite charitable items later this month in honor of a few of Kristen’s favorite causes and talking about the issue all month long.
Read her letter below and join us all month long as we share insights from Kristen, from her favorite ‘Frozen’ lyrics to random thoughts on koalas (you’ll have to wait for it.)
Dear Chalkboard readers,
To begin, let me say that I’m beyond thrilled to be this month’s guest editor. October is my favorite month of the year: great television returns, we wear fall fashion’s new cozy layers, and I plan wildly obscure Halloween costumes for the entire family – no human or canine in my household is spared. But most importantly, in October we turn our attention to a cause dear to my heart: October is World Hunger Month.
We’ve all heard the scary statistics about world hunger: 1 in 8 people go to sleep hungry each day. Every 3.6 seconds a person dies of hunger. Every 12 seconds a child dies of hunger. Hard to imagine and terrifying to think about. These facts and problems can seem far away from our daily existence, but as our world becomes increasingly interconnected, sharing stories and seeing the faces of those who have experienced hunger first hand makes this crisis tangible for all of us.
Lately I’ve been mulling over the concept of being a “global citizen.” We share this world and are therefore mutually responsible for each other. Since becoming a mother I am increasingly aware that we are all the same – no matter how hard we try to be different. We all started out as tiny, sweet-smelling little earthworms and somehow grew into machines on a constant loop of evaluation of self-esteem and our place in this world. Reminding myself how similar we all are makes me aware of other peoples’ needs and I feel so lucky to have mine met. I would be devastated if my child didn’t have enough to eat, and this global social compassion fuels my drive to be an activist. It’s what I would want someone to do for me. Its also informs my decisions to become involved with projects like This Bar Saves Lives and to support companies that make ethical choices.
I read the most beautiful quote the other day and was moved to tears. Confession: It might have something to do with all the feel-good pregnancy hormones I’ve had lately, but the quote is truly inspiring, I promise.
–Hafiz.
To me this sums up so many things. It means we are all in this together. It means we are all capable of being filled with kindness and sharing that kindness whenever we please. It means that self-esteem and worthiness never come from an exterior source and that ego is pretty useless in the grand scheme of things. True happiness exists when you are of service to others.
So for starters, enjoy your lives and be healthy and happy. While you’re at it, be aware of those around you and do the best you can to lift them up too. Maybe we can start together this October – and remember those who go to bed hungry when we do not.
Your fellow global citizen,
Kristen xo
