Some days feel different from the start, as if something bigger is waiting just beyond the ordinary.
Today, when the Be the Voice of Girls community gathered with Aubrey Carter from All Ears English, it quickly became clear that this would be one of those days.

It began simply enough. Aubrey greeted the girls with her signature warmth, sharing a glimpse into her own world — stories about her daughter, an aspiring artist who had traded paintbrushes for an iPad. The connection was immediate. Suddenly, digital art wasn’t just a topic; it was a part of life, something personal and possible. As the conversation opened up, the girls shared their own stories. Some had spent late nights sketching on apps like Ibis Paint and Clip Studio Paint. Others spoke of creating invitations and designing logos, breathing life into media projects at their schools. In their hands, technology wasn’t just a tool. It was a way to tell their own stories.

As the discussion moved forward, language blossomed alongside the art. Aubrey, with her background in ESL education, introduced words that seemed almost to dance across the screen: dazzling, fantastical. The girls tried them out like new brushes, testing their fit. Before long, they were using them naturally to describe the surreal images they explored — a city crammed into a teacup, a magical world squeezed into the smallest of spaces. In their voices, these words didn’t feel like vocabulary terms. They felt like windows into new ways of seeing.

Image after image, the conversation deepened. A digitally-rendered woman, her body a patchwork of machine parts, stirred thoughts about what it means to be human in an age of technology. Another image — bright and colorful, featuring cupcakes — invited laughter and lightness, a reminder that art can carry both weight and whimsy. Every girl who spoke brought a new angle, a new layer, and a willingness to dig deeper than just “what do you see?” They asked, “what do you feel?” and “what might this mean?”

Later, the conversation shifted to something even more personal: the world of filters and social media. It wasn’t a lesson — it was an open, genuine reflection. Why do we use filters? To entertain? To fit in? To shield ourselves? The honesty in the girls’ answers was striking. Without judgment, they explored how filters can mask, enhance, or simply make us laugh — and how living in a filtered world shapes how we see ourselves and others.

As the session wound toward its close, Aubrey posed a final, powerful question:
What makes art valuable?

Is it the money spent on materials? The hours poured into creation? Or is it something else entirely?

The girls didn’t hesitate. True art, they agreed, must carry emotion. Machines, no matter how skillful, cannot weave a heartbeat into their creations. One voice in particular captured the moment perfectly:
“Can’t say AI is art because you just define it and it does not have a meaning or purpose. Art must contain emotion.”

In a world rushing toward automation, these young women stood firm in their belief that what makes us human — our emotions, our dreams, our messy, beautiful imperfection — is not only irreplaceable but essential.

Final Thoughts

Today was about digital art, yes. But more than that, it was about finding new ways to express wonder, to question the world, and to honor the irreplaceable beauty of being human.

With Aubrey’s encouragement, the girls didn’t just learn new vocabulary or new techniques. They explored new corners of themselves — and found in that exploration a dazzling, fantastical kind of strength.

At Be the Voice of Girls, we believe every girl holds a canvas inside her, just waiting for the right spark.
Today was a reminder that when we give them the tools, the space, and the belief in their own voice, their art — and their impact — can change everything.