Monday, November 30, 2009

Inspiration

I wrote a blog a couple of months ago about motivation & I believe that many people get confused between motivation & inspiration.  To me motivation is an action, you get motivated to do something.  Many people, including me, need motivation to get through the day or motivation to start their day.  Motivation is an important part of everyone's life.

So what is inspiration?  Inspiration to me is the connection to your soul that leads you on to greater things.  Finding inspiration on a daily basis can be a challenge to anyone but in order to move ahead in your life, inspiration is what's needed. 

I've spoken many times in the past about how we all just walk through our lives on a daily basis.  I would go so far to say that many of us are sleep walking through our lives.  What I mean by this is that we are comfortable with where we are at & we're afraid to examine our life to move forward.  This comfort may seem wonderful but it will actually disconnect you from your soul & your true purpose in life.  The best way to continue to grow & stay connected is to push yourself into things beyond your comfort zone.

So how do we find our true inspiration?  I believe this is a difficult question because we all use different tools to motivate us & to find our inspiration.  Many people, including myself, can find inspiration in music, movies or books.  The themes that each of these vehicles present us can be a great way to connect to your heart & even to your soul. But, to truly find a deep meaningful inspiration we need to take these themes and internalize them.  We need to discover their true connection to our soul.  

So how do we do this?  For me, it's by taking the time to examine the way these tools truly make me feel.  I allow myself to experience the emotions attached to the themes I've experienced through listening, watching or reading.  Once I allow myself to feel these emotions I examine where the emotion is coming from & what attachment I have to that emotion.  Many times this involves looking at your past & trying to understand why you feel the way you do.  Once you understand why you feel the way you do, you can begin to understand what theme is truly connected to your soul.  This theme may have a basis in your past but it will lift you up beyond anything else.  This true inspiration can change throughout your life but generally stays within the same area of your life.

Allow yourself to examine your true inspirations & find the deepest connection to your soul.  These inspirations will lift you up to a more joyful life.

Till tomorrow,

Bill

Quote of the day: "Take time to deeply examine your life & find your true inspiration.  This inspiration will lift your life to a place of true joy!"

My next video blog is now available on Youtube.  The subject of this blog is "Forgiveness".  Take a look:  http://bit.ly/32ZLSU


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Tuesday, November 24, 2009

Being Grateful II

One of the first blog's I wrote was on being Grateful, to put yourself in an attitude of gratitude will change your life.  Since this is my last blog before Thanksgiving I thought I would revisit that blog.

Start today by creating a daily practice of writing down things to be grateful for.  This practice will shift your thoughts from the negative things in your life to a more positive outlook.  I have also discovered that the feelings that are attached to the things you are grateful for will continue to show up in your life creating a more joyful life going forward.

I challenge you at this special time of the year to begin this practice & to write down daily at least 5 things that you are grateful for.  Feel the feelings of each of these things & remember those feelings as you write down each item.  These feelings of gratitude will create a change in your environment.  I look at it like a stone thrown into a pond each grateful thought creates ripples that spread out throughout the universe creating good thoughts of gratitude throughout the universe.

Everything begins from within & radiates out to the universe in return the God/universe returns the feelings to you over & over again.  So if you're grateful for the great day you had yesterday, God/universe will send back to you more great days.  The important thing is to begin the process & stick to it.  It can be done fairly quickly & the change in your life will be incredible.

Heidi & I are going to one of our favorite places for Thanksgiving.  The Smokey Mountains, I will try to write a blog on Friday but until then I'm not sure about internet access.  I hope you all have a special day with family & friends.  It's doubly special for me as Thanksgiving this year is also my birthday we are grateful to my Mom & Heidi's parents for giving us the money for our birthdays so we could go on this trip.

Hugs,

Bill

Quote of the day: "Give thanks for the great things in your life.  This state of gratitude will bring you more joy everyday."

My next video blog is now available on Youtube.  The subject of this blog is "Forgiveness".  Take a look:  http://bit.ly/32ZLSU


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Monday, November 23, 2009

Good & Evil

Is there good & evil in the world?  The easy answer of this question for most of us is a resounding yes!!  But, looking at this question at a deeper level the answer is no!  How can I possibly say that?  Of course there's evil in the world, right?  I believe there are a few things at work in this question; first of all we go back to the need to label.  It's a great comfort for us to say that this good & that is evil.  We need to know that there is evil in the world because we have something to blame for our misfortunes on.

Once we move past the "Labeling" argument we need to look at our true nature.  What is our true nature?  Remember that each one of us is a divine being created by a divine being, all we truly know is to love & be loved.  I know this sounds hard to believe but truly that's all we know from our true nature.  When we are connected to the divine energy that is our soul we are connected to everything in the universe & we feel love.

So why do "evil"/bad things happen?  The reason why things happen that are terrible is because of the EGO.  I wrote a wonderful blog many months ago about the EGO & I like Dr Wayne Dyer's definition for EGO: Edge Out God.  You see that's where we go wrong.  We look for the instant gratification that satisfies the EGO & we loose the connection to our true nature in the process.

The EGO can never be satisfied it always wants more & unfortunately it will do whatever it has to to get what it wants.  So the people that do the things we consider evil are only misguided divine beings.  As we awaken our true nature the world will move to a place of more love & understanding.  Slowly each one of us will learn to stay connected to our soul & thus to everything.  This connection will change the world.  Love is the answer for everything we need.  Will we eliminate evil when this shift begins to happen?  I think the answer to this is no because there will always be people that look for the quick & easy way to get what they believe they want.  My hope is that these people will become less & less important in the world.

Love is the path to everything you can imagine.  Believe in love & work on staying connected to your soul.  The universe will open up to you & your life will be better then even you can imagine.

Till tomorrow,

Bill

Quote of the day: "Love is all we need, if we can move to a place of love we can change the world"

My next video blog is now available on Youtube.  The subject of this blog is "Forgiveness".  Take a look:  http://bit.ly/32ZLSU


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Friday, November 20, 2009

Life's Mission

Do you know what your Life's purpose is?  Have you set goals & objectives to reach your Life's purpose?  I believe we are all born with our true purpose inside of us.  I think many of us spend our entire life trying to figure out what that purpose is.  We've talked a lot in the past about opening yourself up to God/universe & paying attention to signs that you receive.

I believe most of us struggle with what our true purpose is & finding what really fulfills us can be a real journey of faith.  So often the noise of life gets in our way & the demands of others in our life as well as just getting through day to day, quiets the burning we have deep within us.  We struggle to find the time to examine our own feelings & desires & we let the speed of life catch us up in just getting through.

I know for me, I've struggled my entire life with what I should be doing & how it will make a difference.  I've worked hard on trying to listen to the deepest parts of myself to try & discern 
what my true purpose is.  Here's what I've decided for me; My life is here to serve others & bring as much love & joy into their life as I can.  

I know most of you are saying well that sounds great but how can you do that?  I haven't truly figured that out yet.  That's the other side of your life's purpose, how to make it viable in today's world.  What I do to fill me up is write this blog, try to be a presence of love on twitter & recently I started my video blog.  These activities fulfill my true purpose & help to lift me up everyday, although they don't bring me the work I really need.  I think this is an unfortunate choice many of us need to make. The choice between our true life's purpose & how we can make a living & although this choice may be difficult for us.  I believe that if you fill yourself up with what you feel your life's purpose is whenever you can it's truly better then not doing anything that matters in your life. 

If each of us would take the time to examine our lives & discern what our true life's purpose is; the world would be a better place.  It's not the bold loud steps that are going to make a difference in this world.  They can be wonderful to see & they may even inspire us but the way to make the world a better place to live is for each one us to move to a place of love & understanding in everything we do.

Till Monday, enjoy your weekend.

Bill

Quote of the day: "Take time to discover your true life's mission.  Then move to fill your life with it's true purpose & the world will be a better place."

My next video blog is now available on Youtube.  The subject of this blog is "Forgiveness".  Take a look:  http://bit.ly/32ZLSU


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Tuesday, November 17, 2009

Being Judgmental

Yesterday we discussed how putting labels on things in your life closes off all the possibilities for that "thing" to be anything other then what you label it.  Today we're going to take this concept to the next level & discuss it in regards to people.  We all interact with many people in our daily lives & most of us put labels on these people right away.  These labels are created by our need to judge everyone that comes into our life.

This need for judgment is driven by our EGO's.  We feel comfort & superiority by judging & defining the people in our lives.  Oh that person is rude, he's smart, she's stupid, etc.  The problem with judging the people in our lives goes much deeper then labeling of "things" in our lives.  Like yesterday's blog we close ourselves off by judging everyone in our lives but this is especially harmful with people because we limit our ability to learn from these people in our lives.

One of the first blogs I did 5 months ago when I began writing was on "Synchronicity".  In that blog I pointed out that everyone that comes into your life is there for a reason.  Our challenge is to discover the message that these people have for us.  This message will be much more difficult to discover if we've already judged these people & labeled them as someone that can't help us.  Remember that we need to come from a place of love to deal with everyone in our life.  By coming from a place of love we can actually change the relationships in our life.  Sometimes it's not easy to change these relationships because of what we've said or done in the past but the relationship will change if you continue to open your heart & come from a place of love.

In addition to closing ourselves off from these people, our judgment may actually harm the other person. How you ask?  It's easy, because we all look to "label" everything & everyone in our life.  We are very willing to accept the "labels" that others communicate to us.  This passing on of "labels" can create an environment where the judged person is forever stuck with that "label" & we therefore deny this person the ability to achieve the life they desire.  Of course this "labeling" can become even more destructive because it can create predjudice & hate. 

Open your heart to love, let go of judgment & learn from all the people that enter your life.

Till tomorrow,

Bill

Quote of the day: "If you judge people, you have no time to love them." - Mother Teresa 

My next video blog is now available on Youtube.  The subject of this blog is "Forgiveness".  Take a look:  http://bit.ly/32ZLSU


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Monday, November 16, 2009

Labels

Do you like to give everything in your life labels?  That's good, that's bad, that's ugly, that beautiful....you get the idea.  To many of us try to label everything in our lives' to some extent this practice give us great comfort because when we label something it's defined & we feel better knowing that we can call it that!

The truth is this practice closes us off to other possibilities by defining anything in our life as good/bad, etc. we've made a decision that it can't be anything else but what we've labeled it.  This is especially true with people & tomorrow I'll go deeper into this practice in regards to people in a blog about being judgmental.  Today the important thing to remember is that nothing in your life is only one thing.  Everything has the potential to be exactly what you want it to be & many things can be more then we expect them to be.  But, if we label something we immediately take away the possibility for it to be anything other then what we label it.

To some extent I understand that this is a difficult idea, it took me many years to try & understand how we choose these labels for everything in our lives & by choosing the labels we define these things forever.  In the past I spoke about the interesting experiments that were conducted by Dr. Masaru Emoto.  In these experiments he saw the way thoughts could effect water crystals.  If things in the universe are all connected & the mere thought by someone can change the structure of water.  Then defining something with a label will change that thing to whatever you decide it is, not what it can potentially be.

By opening your mind & allowing the things in your life to just be & to observe everything as it enters your life.  You create a place that God/universe can easily play in & thus you open your life to many more possibilities.

Till Tomorrow,

Bill

Quote of the day: "By letting go of labels we open our lives to more possibilities. Through this opening up we allow ourselves more joy!"

My next video blog is now available on Youtube.  The subject of this blog is "Forgiveness".  Take a look: http://bit.ly/4d8jne


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Thursday, November 12, 2009

Death

What are your thoughts about death? Do you believe in life after death?  Do you believe in reincarnation?  One of the deepest seated traditions in all cultures is the traditions that are followed around death.  Death is a subject, for the most part, that isn't discussed in most places in the U.S. & it can lead to some very interesting discussion if it ever is brought up. 

I never really thought much about death growing up.  I lost my Grandmother when I was about 9 & still remember my Grandfather crying in our family room the night of her death.  Then when I was 20 I lost one of my best friends, my Grandfather.  Although his death affected me to some extent, the truth is I was so tied up in my own life it's only been since I've grown older that I've realize how much I've missed him.  Then nearly 4 years ago I lost my Father.  His death had a huge impact on my life.  This impact actually surprised me because we didn't always have the best relationship but from his death I've been able to grow & expand who I am & what I believe.

I believe that the core of who we are is energy.  This energy is connected to everything in the world & beyond.  It is this energy that we need to learn to tap into on a daily basis.  It is the energy of our divine creation.  Since at our core we are pure energy there truly is no such thing as death.  We are truly divine beings created by a divine being & when we leave this shell that is our human body we simply return to that divine source.

When we are able to connect to this energy, the energy that always dwells deep within us. We can connect to everyone who's come before us because when we die our energy is reconnected to the energy of everything.  The energy that is God/universe.

Is it easy to let go of the people we care about?  I have found it easier with the knowledge that they truly are still apart of us.  Like everyone else I miss the physical presence of the people I've know in my life but I believe when I need to hear them God/universe still sends us the answers that we need to hear.

So do I believe in reincarnation?  I'm truly not sure; there has been some compelling evidence that reincarnation may be a fact but to me it's not important. Whether we physically return to the earth or not, our energy, which is our soul, continues on forever.

Learn to reconnect with this divine energy on a daily basis.  Reconnect with the loved ones you've lost in your life & live through this energy to have a more joyful life.

I'm going to take tomorrow off from writing.  I hope you all have a great weekend.  I look forward to connecting with you again on Monday.

Bill

Quote of the day: "Death is not an ending it's only the beginning of a new chapter in our lives."

My third video blog is now available on 'Youtube".  I continue on this blog discussing "love - dealing with the past", take a look.  I look forward to your comments: http://bit.ly/4BcZBi


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Wednesday, November 11, 2009

Veterans Day

On this special day in the U.S. (Veterans Day) I wanted to take time to discuss service to your country & thank all of the people who are currently serving or who have ever served.  There is no greater gift than to be willing to lay down your life for your country.  The incredible things that these men & women have done & seen in order to make the world a better place is amazing to me.  Far to many of them have paid the ultimate price by giving their life for their country. 

I truly believe the world is moving to place of more love & peace.  My hope would be that in our lifetime we will see the end of war.  But until that dream becomes a reality I salute the men & women that serve their country.

Many of the people that are currently serving had no idea they would be part of a war.  They were working everyday jobs just like you & me.  As a way to give back to their country they joined the National Guard.  In the past the National Guard has served mostly to help people after disasters.  These brave young men & young have now been pushed to the front lines in the war serving long tours of duty far away from home.

Can you imagine being away from your family & everyone you love for as long 18 months.  In a country you don't know & putting your life on the line everyday?  It's hard to imagine the sacrifice that these people have to endure. 

It's also important to remember the people they've left behind as well.  Imagine becoming a single parent because your significant other is shipped off to a war for up to 18 months.  All of a sudden you have to take care of everything on your own.  If you know of anyone that's in the situation, help them in anyway you can!!

Finally let's not forget when these brave young men & women return home.  Their readjust to a "normal" life is incredibly difficult & many of them can't handle the transition back.  Reach out your hand & help them.  Give them thanks & support them in anyway you can. 

I know we don't think about the people serving to much.  The statistics we hear on the news hurt us but don't really affect us unless it's someone we know.  Today & throughout the year give thanks to these brave men & women & reach your hand out to help them whenever you can.

Till tomorrow,

Bill

Quote of the Day "Give thanks to the service men & women you know today. Reach your hand out & lift them up to show your gratitude!"

My third video blog is now available on 'Youtube".  I continue on this blog discussing "love", take a look.  I look forward to your comments: http://bit.ly/4BcZBi


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Tuesday, November 10, 2009

Fun

Do you know how to have fun?  Is fun part of your daily life?  As a continuation of yesterday's blog on renewal, I thought it would be great to talk about having fun.  Then I saw this morning when I logged on that today is the 40th anniversary of Sesame Street, an even better reason to discuss fun.

In life we know how busy we can be, we know that our work life can be full of stress & sometimes our home life can also be stressful too.  One of the best things to do for stress is to have some fun & especially to laugh.  Laughter will lift your mood regardless of how you're feeling.  In this day & age people sometimes are afraid to laugh because they worry about others reactions to their laughter.  I say stop worrying about what other people think, have fun & enjoy your life.

We put so many pretenses into our life, if I do this it will mean that's going to happen.  Sometimes you'll be surprised at the reaction of others in your life & truthfully we shouldn't be concerned about others reactions in our lives.  If we come from a place of love people will be accepting & may have some fun too!

Now obviously in a corporate environment you have to be sure you're within the rules of the company you work for, but there's nothing better then having some fun & having a great laugh.  I did a blog on laughter a couple of months ago & was amazed at the therapeutic effect of laughter.  There have been some great studies done on how a persons mood can change with just a good laugh. Laughter is truly the best medicine.

One of the best ways to have fun is to allow yourself to see the world through the eyes of a child.  The wonderment you'll experience by opening your mind to the simple little joys in life that a child finds is amazing.  Be a child & have some fun everyday you'll discover how easy it is to lift your mood & how much joy this simple practice can bring to your life.

Congrads to Sesame Street,

Till tomorrow,

Bill

Quote of the day: "Put fun into your daily schedule & you'll discover how much joy you can add to your life!"  

My third video blog is now available on 'Youtube".  I continue on this blog discussing "love", take a look.  I look forward to your comments: http://bit.ly/4BcZBi


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Monday, November 9, 2009

Renewal

What do you do to renew yourself?  Do you have a practice to renew your soul?  So often in this busy world the one thing we ignore is ourselves.  We've talked a lot in the past about taking time to be quiet, taking time with a vision board & taking time to set intentions but, we all need a practice to renew ourselves.  I have found in the past the easiest way to discover what helps you to renew yourself is something you love.  We talked in the past in the blog on passion how you should make time to do what you love.  Many times what we truly love will renew us. 

For me the answer to renewal is almost always being in nature.  I find great comfort in the beauty of nature & as I've mentioned before one of my favorite places to go to is the Smokey Mountains.  Whenever I've felt worn down or disconnected the Smokies have always renewed me.  I'm very lucky, as most of you know I'm still looking for a job, because my Mother & my In-Laws have paid for us to go to the Smokies over Thanksgiving (also my Birthday).  I look forward to reconnecting with this special place of mine. 

One of the other things that I love to do that helps to renew me is to take pictures.  I've always loved photography & to be out in nature taking pictures is a great way for me to renew myself.  As you can see it's really up to you to decide what helps you renew, maybe it's just a nice hot bath or some quiet time to read.  Discover what helps you to renew & find time to do it often.  We all need to clear ourselves out & renew our soul.  It is in this true connection, the one between our conscience mind & our soul, that we will always find true joy.  Discover what helps you renew your soul, for this renewal will keep you connected to your true self.  Practice this renewal process you will lead a more joyful life.

Until tomorrow,

Bill

Quote of the day: "Find what helps you renew your soul, do this renewal often & stay connected to your true self"


My third video blog is now available on 'Youtube".  I continue on this blog discussing "love", take a look.  I look forward to your comments: http://bit.ly/4BcZBi


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Friday, November 6, 2009

Joy in every moment

We've discussed living in the moment many times before but it's always a great subject to talk about again.  Can you find joy in every moment?  Can you discover it even when things don't go the way you planned?

The truth is that the only time we have is "now".  We aren't guaranteed the future & the past is something we all need to move through.  So many of us get caught up in the past, we need to learn from our experiences, release the emotions, forgive ourselves or the others that have done us wrong & move on.  I know this sounds a lot easier then it is.  I've been through many things in my life & it took me a long time to figure out that the past has no bearing on the future or more importantly on the "now"!!  Trust me when I tell you that no matter what you've been through in your life you can move past it.  Read the blog I wrote about releasing the past & know that you can do it & it's the most important thing to do to move forward in your life.

So how do we stay in the current moment?  The easiest way for me is just to be.  I pay attention to everything that's going on in the moment & look for the joy in each & every moment.  I've found that if you let go of your EGO (I'm the most important person here, etc) & truly listen to the others around you, finding joy is easy.

This is especially true when things don't go the way you planned.  I had a day a few days ago that everything I had planned had to be changed.  Instead of getting upset with all the things that occurred I let go of the outcome & just paid attention to the events.  By doing this I was able to learn things about myself & the others involved in my "crazy" day.

Each of us has the power to be connected in each moment we live.  The more attention you pay to each moment the more you will discover and God/universe will respond to your shift by filling each moment with wonderful things.

Enjoy each moment, find the joy. By living in the "now" you will discover a more joyful life.

Have a great weekend, see you Monday,

Bill

Quote of the day: "Find the joy in each moment & the world will open up for you."


My second video blog is now available on 'Youtube".  I continue on this blog discussing "love", take a look.  I look forward to your comments: http://bit.ly/n4X6Z  I will release the next video on Monday!


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Thursday, November 5, 2009

Procrastination

Do you Procrastinate?  What does Procrastination have to do with living a more joyful life?  Procrastination delays any action we feel we should take.  The only way God/universe works is through action.  Without us taking an active role in our lives God/universe doesn't know how or when to help us.

I personally have never been a person that procrastinates but from the people I've had in my life that do I've heard many reasons why they do it.  These include, I truly don't have the time, I work better under pressure, I need a deadline to know when something needs to be done.  The truth is all these are excuses especially when it comes to your own life.  You need to take an active role in your participation with God/universe.

Dr. Wayne Dyer has a new book that was released a few months ago called "Excuses Begone".  The basis of this book is that all the things that hold us back from our joyful life are merely excuses we need to let go of.  Procrastination is one of those excuses.

Create an active plan to change your life for the better.  Start with small steps & focus on each of them daily.  With your active participation your life will change to a more joyful/positive life.  You have a choice in every moment of your life: "How do I want to live my life?".  The truth is that no action is still a choice so why not chose today to change your life for the better!!  Take action & become an active participant in the journey to joy in your life!

Till tomorrow,

Bill

Quote of the day: "Let go of procrastination & become an active participant in your life today!"

My second video blog is now available on 'Youtube".  I continue on this blog discussing "love", take a look.  I look forward to your comments: http://bit.ly/n4X6Z


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Wednesday, November 4, 2009

Taking a Stand

Are you willing to take a stand for what you believe in?  So many of us our certain about many things in our lives but we're unwilling to actually stand up for what we believe.  A few months ago I wrote a blog on negative people & how misery loves company.  In that blog I described how one person who is negative can bring many people down into their misery.  The true reason for this is that we social beings & we enjoy being around others.  This being social also leads us to not makes waves when we're in a social setting.

The other reason we allow this negative influence to affect us is because we haven't developed the connection to our source well enough yet.  In the beginning as we are learning to be more loving & stay connected to our soul, it's easy for us to lose the positive feeling of that connection.  As we begin to practice this connection we will be able to withstand others negative influence.

I've had many wonderful talks with people in private about their hopes & dreams for the world but I have often seen these same people unwilling to express these feelings in open communication to others.  In fact I've seen people actually contradict their feelings because of the people they are talking to.

I believe as a community we are all shifting to a more loving & understanding world but in order for this transformation to completely take place we all need to stand up for what we believe in.  This act of being willing to express our true feelings with anyone in our lives, will begin to shift more people to the place of love.  I understand that there are always risks in being open with people but I believe if we truly want to make a difference in this world we live in, each one of us needs to be willing to open ourselves up.

Together we can do anything.  I truly believe in each & every one of us.  Let's start today, let's begin to be more loving & be willing to share that love with everyone in our lives.  Stand up for what you believe, take action by being the genuine person you are.  By doing this you'll experience a more joyful life & the world will change! 

Till tomorrow,

Bill

Quote of the day: "Stand up for what you believe in, be willing to express your true feeling with everyone in your life! Make a difference today!"

My second video blog is now available on 'Youtube".  I continue on this blog discussing "love", take a look.  I look forward to your comments: http://bit.ly/n4X6Z


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