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Welcome to Rebar Road Warrior. This section of the web features encouraging words for the warrior from warriors. If you would like to post something here send it to us at epowertools@gmail. For two people in a marriage to live together day after day is unquestionably the one miracle the Vatican has overlooked. - Bill Cosby
The average American eats eight ounces of meat a day, nearly twice the average consumption of the world. - New York Times, Jan. 27, 2008
Although he’s regularly asked to do so, God does not take sides in American politics. - George J. Mitchell
2.2 million marriages take place in the United States annually. That’s 5,918 marriages a day. - U.S. Census Bureau
Among the unsaved people on earth, what is the prevailing image of Christians today? It’s not the dedicated and inspired work of our missionaries. It’s not the great preaching of Billy Graham or others who inspire people. It’s the image of divisions among brothers and sisters in Christ as we struggle for authority or argue about the interpretation of individual verses in the Holy Scriptures. - Jimmy Carter at the New Baptist Covenant Celebration, reported by Baptist Press
| From Sonoma, CA. a prayer for military | | Prayer: | May the Father of this country and of every nation, take pride in the created order of life. And may you, who are the image of Christ, remember not to love your country blindly, but love that which is good in her; avoid that which is evil in her; work to correct the faults in her; pray for the leaders assigned to her and worship the God who seeks most from her--righteousness and justice. Glory to the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. Amen |
From Virgin Islands A lawabiding man was being tailgated by a stressed out woman on a busy boulevard. Suddenly, the light turned yellow, just in front of him. He did the right thing, stopping at the crosswalk, even though he could have beaten the red light by accelerating through the intersection. The tailgating woman hit the roof, and the horn, screaming in frustration as she missed her chance to get through the intersection. As she was still in mid-rant, she heard a tap on her window and looked up into the face of a very serious police officer. The officer ordered her to exit her car with her hands up. He took her to the police station where she was searched, finger printed, photographed, and placed in a holding cell. After a couple of hours, a policeman approached the cell and opened the door. She was escorted back to the booking desk where the arresting officer was waiting with her personal effects. He said: “I’m very sorry for this mistake. You see, I pulled up behind your car while you were blowing your horn, flipping off the guy in front of you and cussing a blue streak at him. I noticed the ‘Choose Life’ license plate holder, the ‘What Would Jesus Do?’ bumper sticker, the ‘Follow Me to Sunday-School’ bumper sticker, and the chrome-plated Christian fish emblem on the trunk. Naturally, I assumed you had stolen the car.” From the Virgin Islands: A man from Norfolk, VA called a local radio station to share this on Sept 11th, 2003. His Name was Robert Matthews. These are his words: "A few weeks before Sept. 11th, my wife and I found out we were going to have our first child. She planned a trip out to CA to visit her sister. On our way to the airport, we prayed that God would grant my wife a safe trip and be with her. Shortly after I said 'amen,' we both heard a loud pop and the car shook violently. We had blown a tire. I replaced the tire as quickly as I could, but we still missed her flight. Both very upset, we drove home. I received a call from my father who was retired NYFD. He asked what my wife's flight number was, but I explained that we missed the flight. My father informed me that her flight was the one that crashed into the southern tower. I was too shocked to speak. My father also had more news for me; he was going to help. 'This is not something I can't just sit by for I have to do something.' I was concerned for his safety, of course, but more because he had never given his life to Christ. After a brief debate, I knew his mind was made up. Before he got off of the phone, he said, 'take good care of my grandchild.' Those were the last words I ever heard my father say; he died while helping in the rescue effort. My joy that my prayer of safety for my wife had been answered quickly became anger. I was angry at God, at my father, and at myself. I had gone for nearly two years blaming God for taking my father away. My son would never know his grandfather, my father had never accepted Christ, and I never got to say good-bye. Then something happened. About two months ago, I was sitting at home with my wife and my son, when there was a knock on the door. I looked at my wife, but I could tell she wasn't expecting anyone. I opened the door to a couple with a small child. The man looked at me and asked if my father's name was Jake Matthews. I told him it was. He quickly grabbed my hand and said, 'I never got the chance to meet your father, but it is an honor to meet his son.' He explained to me that his wife had worked in the World Trade Center and had been caught inside after the attack. She was pregnant and had been caught under debris. He then explained that my father had been the one to find his wife and free her. My eyes welled up with tears as I thought of my father giving his life for people like this. He then said, 'there is something else you need to know.' His wife then told me that as my father worked to free her, she talked to him and led him to Christ. I began sobbing at the news. Now I know that when I get to heaven, my father will be standing beside Jesus to welcome me, and that this family would be able to thank him themselves. When their baby boy was born, they named him Jacob Matthew in honor of the man who gave his life so that mother and baby could live." This story should help us to realize two things: First that though it has been several years since the attacks, we should never let it become a mere tragic memory. And second but most important - God is always in control. We may not see the reason behind things, and we may never know this side of heaven, but God is ALWAYS in control. Give thanks to the Lord for He is good. His love endures forever. Psalm 136:1 The best kind of friend is the kind you can sit on a porch and swing with, never say a word, and then walk away feeling like it was the best conversation you've ever had. From Japan: Pro Baseball player C.J. Nitkowski is moving to Japan. The following thoughts are from his web site cocerning moving overseas and his walk with the Big Boss. www.cjbaseball.com The time was right and the opportunity was there and so I have signed a 2007 baseball contract to play for the Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks in Fukuoka, Japan. This is something I have wanted to do for a while now and when the phone call came I said yes without hesitation. I am extremely excited about this next part of my baseball journey. I had the chance to go to Japan for the 2003 season but I just was not sure if I was ready and declined the invitation. I still felt like I wanted to pitch here in the U.S. Since that time I have been trying to get to Japan. With only 12 teams and 4 non-Japanese players per team at the "major league" level opportunities are scarce. This opportunity is a real blessing. The following is his story on getting to know his Father. New Orleans, LA So what exactly has been going on with me? My life has had some dramatic changes over the past 2 months and I can proudly say for the better. Based on the title of this letter I am sure you can see where this is going and I hope you will continue to read on. This is probably going to get long. On March 25h I was released by the Astros out of spring training. Although I knew it was coming, it was a pretty strong moment of frustration for me in my career. I felt too good for this to happen, I felt strong and was in the best shape of my career. I worked incredibly hard over the winter and I couldn't believe it came down to this. I had such an inconsistent spring that I did not make that team even though basically by the middle of spring training I was only competing against myself for the left handed spot in the bullpen. When I got home to the house I was renting in Kissimmee, FL I was frustrated, mad, and suddenly scrambling to find a job for the 2002 season. What happened that afternoon, without getting into to too much detail was a moment when God came crashing into my life like a ton of bricks. I was eating lunch in the living room watching TV when I heard an awkward sound, almost like water running. I had assumed it was my 2-year-old son playing in the sink, in Florida he always liked to wash his hands in the kitchen. After about 20 seconds I heard it again in the distant background and I realized that it wasn't the sink, but I couldn't quite put my finger on it. A few seconds later I looked up and noticed that the sliding glass door going out to the pool was open and I quickly realized the sound I was hearing was the filter running. It was an awkward sound to me because that door was always locked and never left open. I jumped up and raced out to the pool deck, my son was nowhere to be found. I looked into the middle of the pool and there he was completely submerged in water. He is 2 years old and does not know how to swim. I jumped into the water and pulled him out. He was disturbingly quiet at first but after a few seconds we realized he was OK. At 2 years old another 30 seconds or so and I would have lost my son. As eerie as that was, here is what shakes me even more. I was the furthest person from the pool in the house at the time. I by far have the worst hearing of the 3 adults that were in the house; I played drums as a kid and never wore earplugs. But, miraculously I was the only one in the house who heard the filter running. On top of that if I did not get released on that day, I would have been at the ballpark with the team, they had a 1:05 game at home that day, this took place around 2:00. We were in that house for about 40 days prior to that incident, and this is the day my son figures out how to open the sliding glass door? I barely slept that night and had a lot of emotions running through me. I was really trying to figure out what was the message here. At first I thought God had had enough, He was tired of me putting so much emphasis on baseball and making money and letting it control my life. I felt like He was slapping me in the face and reminding me what was really important and how He could take that away from me at any moment. As I look back now and see what has happened to my life I realize what that day was all about. God wasn't mad at me, He wasn't almost punishing me. What happened was Jesus Christ came to me, put His arm around me and said, "Let's take a walk." My walk with Christ has been nothing short of amazing. I grew up Catholic, 8 years of grade school and 4 years of high school. After I signed in 1994 I found my self slowly drifting away from the Catholic Church. In professional baseball there is an organization called Baseball Chapel. Their purpose is to have a chaplain in every city from rookie ball to the big leagues to come preach to players, if they choose, on Sundays. It is a huge help with our schedule. I attended when I could and found myself more inspired and fulfilled by 20 minutes of baseball chapel then 50 minutes of Catholic mass. Even though I attended Catholic Church at home in the off-season I really felt like I was just more of a Christian than a Catholic. I understood that Jesus Christ came to this Earth to die for my sins, so that they could be forgiven, and the gates of heaven opened. I thought I got it. I thought I was a good Christian. The way I was living my life was proving otherwise. God's work is amazing and it cannot be ignored. The fact that I ended up back in New Orleans at AAA for the Astros is an event that I am still to this day amazed by. Not that I didn't think there was a chance I'd be in AAA, but the fact that it would be in New Orleans. This winter my decision of where I was going to sign came down to two choices for me, the New York Mets or the Houston Astros. I am a native New Yorker and had the privilege to play with the Mets for the final month of the 2001 season. I have wanted to play in New York since I was about 8 years old and even as I reached the major leagues as an adult I still wanted to play in New York. The Mets experience for me in 2001 can only be described as perfect. It was an ideal situation, great organization, a winning team, great players that played the game hard. This is what I have wanted all my life. I was in a limited role there but performed well, I knew that this was my atmosphere, that this was where I wanted to be and where I had my greatest chance to succeed.. So when the opportunity came to go back there in 2002 you think it would have been a no brainer. This was back when I thought I controlled my own destiny, I am smarter than that now. The Mets offer was a better one then Houston's. It was a 40-man roster spot, major league contract with about twice as much guaranteed money as Houston was offering in their minor league contract. Let me emphasize this again, the Mets offered me a major league contract, more guaranteed money, I loved playing there, I always wanted to play in New York my family & friends are there and I signed the MINOR LEAGUE deal with the Astros. Some may say that was just a dumb move, I didn't realize I was being guided by someone else than me. Luckily since Christ has entered me life I have been able to look back and understand why it happened as opposed to regretting my decision. So now I am on a minor league deal with the Astros, the risk of going to the minor leagues is alive and well. My contract was structured so that if I did not make the Astros major league team I would be released if I chose to do so. I felt good about my chances of making the team but just in case I did not, I already decided that I would not go to back to New Orleans, if I cannot be in the majors in 2002 I am going to play AAA baseball somewhere else. I already played in New Orleans all of 1997 and I just thought I would feel like I was going backwards, if I have to I will go somewhere else. I told all my friends and family this. The only thing I was sure of this winter is that in 2002 I would not be playing baseball in New Orleans. I would have bet anyone a million dollars of that. Well, sure enough, when it came time to sign a minor league deal with someone in late March after my release, all signs pointed to going back to New Orleans. I couldn't believe it, but I was on my way. We had 2 exhibition games before the season, the first at Round Rock, TX versus the Astros AA team. I was sitting in the bullpen there talking to Pete Munro. Pete is one of our starting pitchers who has played with the Toronto Blue Jays in the big leagues. Pete is a native New Yorker as well, born and raised in Queens, NY, right by St. John's where I went to college. I always felt a connection talking with guys from New York, it's just one of things, people from the same area can generally get along well. For some strange reason I really didn't talk to Pete that much in big league camp, he was there, but we just didn't talk much. Now Pete is straight New York, accent an all. Where I grew up we didn't talk about religion or God much except in times of tragedy, typical. So you can imagine my surprise when out of nowhere in that bullpen in Round Rock, TX Pete says to me, "Yo bro, where you at with you at with your faith?" I was thinking to myself what? This guy? No way. Christianity is for southerners, Bible belters, those kinds of people, not 26 year old baseball players from Queens, NY. Well sure enough, Pete was a born again Christian and I began to tell him the story of my son and how I felt God was trying to work in my life and I was still putting it all together. Pete has been a huge help to me. He also grew up Catholic so he could answer a lot of my questions. Before he met his wife Samantha, who brought him to Christ, Pete was like a lot of athletes in their mid-twenties, just living what a proffesional athlete would consider the "good life", having a goood time. He has been ministering to me and continues to do so and has helped me to strengthen my faith. I cannot go into every detail of what we talk about, there just isn't the time. But there is one thing that he said to me in that bullpen in Round Rock, TX that has stuck me and will stick with me for the rest of my life. I have never done drugs and in recent years had drank very casually. We were talking about vices each of us had and I told him the only thing I really do during the season is go to strip clubs. I don't go to regular bars, I am not out to meet women and I would never cheat on my wife. If I go out on the road 9 times out of 10 it would be to a strip club. I just like to go there with a couple of the guys, have a few drinks, smoke a cigar and go home by myself. No big deal. My wife knew I went most of the time and although she wasn't in love with the idea she knew she could trust me. I told Pete this and he said to me, "Sure your wife might not mind bro, but she's not the One you have to answer too." Man, that hit me hard and I suddenly realized I have been living my life to please the wrong people. My heart was so receptive to the Lord and it was instantly getting filled with a lot of information. As things developed I still didn't understand why Christians would try not to listen to rock music, or watch R rated movies or do other things that didn't seem to be that big of a deal to me. If you ask the right people or look hard enough, Scripture will answer your questions. One verse that has really been sticking with me and answering a lot of these questions is 1Corinthians 10:31 "Whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God." That "whatever" covers quite a lot. I by no means have this defeated, it is a battle everyday. I am going to face a strong test of glorifying God when the 3rd season of the Sopranos starts up on HBO. Pray for me. I say that half jokingly, but it's true. We will always be sinners and the battle goes on everyday. Two months into the baseball season and I can blatantly see the difference God has made in my life both on and off the field. Not a time goes by that I don't take the mound and ask Him to help me do His will in the game, take the ability He has given me and use it to glorify Him and to be a shinning example of a Christian Athlete for Him. Not an easy thing to do. When Christ enters your life you are not suddenly freed from sin and temptation, you never will be. But, God will never let you be tempted beyond what you are able to bear. If someone tells you they just can't help but do something they are tempted by, they are wrong. He has kept me in control. I used to curse on the mound and loud. I would use the Lord's name in vein as loud as I could sometimes when things didn't go my way. He has taken that away from me, I think, so far, so good.. I have come really close and have had half-slips of the tongue but I have been able to control my mouth and my emotions when I take the hill. It's because I want to be out there glorifying Him, not myself. I have strong regret at the thought of every time I was a bad example to others on the mound by losing my cool and shouting obscenities as I made my way back to the dugout. Nowadays I hear someone use God's name in vein and it just cuts right through me, it makes me cringe. Now that I am no longer a wavering Christian athlete, there are a lot of things from my past I regret. If this was 3 months ago and I was in AAA I would have been frustrated beyond belief right now that I wasn't in the big leagues. I feel good, I am ready to go back to big leagues, I am throwing the ball well and yet here I sit in AAA. My contract is situated so that I can go to any other team that wants me at anytime and here I am in AAA. You always hear the talk about the need for left handed pitching. I am 29 years old with 5 years big league experience, am pitching well with good velocity, but am here in AAA. And I can take it all in stride because this is where God wants me right now. Don't mistake my acceptance of God's plan for contentment. I am itching to get to the big leagues in the worst way. I feel I wasted 5 good years of playing in front of an audience and having a web page that used to register over 1,000 hits a day and never did I do my part to spread the Word. I am hungrier than ever to pitch for a big league team but now it is for the right reasons. I have a reason to be successful at baseball that is stronger than any reason I have had in the past. It's not money, it's not fame, it's not glory to me or my family. It's glory to God. I have a God given ability to throw a baseball at the highest level of competition, and what have I done with it? I have never trusted that ability to take me where God wants me to go. I always tried to control my own destiny instead of just taking what God has given me and living with it. It has been an amazing two months for me. I can't believe I am even saying that as a minor league player. If you have made it this far you are either a believer or have an interest in being a believer. I by no means have all the answers, I pray for knowledge and wisdom each day. I hope this message has encouraged you to develop your relationship with God. This is an uncertain time in our world, people are looking for answers, the harvest is ripe and it is my prayer that God will enter your life like He has mine. Turn your life over to Him. I have. Maybe I'll never make it back to the big leagues, and of course I would be disappointed by that, this is what I love to do. But if that's the price I have to pay to get closer to the Lord, then I can accept that. Remember that Jesus Christ loves you, He always will, no matter what you have done in the past He will forgive you, just as you should forgive others who have done wrong by you. There is only one way to get into heaven. We are all sports fans and how many times have we seen this but never really took the time to read it and understand what it means: John 3:16 - "For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, so that those who believe in Him shall not perish, but have everlasting life" Are you going to heaven? Will you have everlasting life? From Tyler Please read the entire e-mail to see what is meant by Red Friday.
Message Follows:
Last week, while traveling to Chicago on business, I noticed a Marine Sergeant traveling with a folded flag, but did not put two and two together. After we boarded our flight, I turned to the Sergeant, who'd been invited to sit in First Class (across from me), and inquired if he was heading home.
" No," he responded.
Heading out I asked?
"No. I'm escorting a Soldier home."
Going to pick him up?
"No. He is with me right now. He was killed in Iraq. I'm taking him home to his family."
The realization of what he had been asked to do hit me like a punch to the gut. It was an honor for him. He told me that, although he didn't know the Soldier, he had delivered the news of his passing to the Soldier's family and felt as if he knew them after many conversations in so few days. I turned back to him, extended my hand, and said, "Thank you. Thank you for doing what you do so my family and I can do what we do."
Upon landing in Chicago the pilot stopped short of the gate and made the following announcement over the intercom.
"Ladies and gentlemen, I would like to note that we have had the honor of having Sergeant Steeley of the United States Marine Corps join us on this flight. He is escorting a fallen comrade back home to his family. I ask that you please remain in your seats when we open the forward door to allow Sergeant Steeley to deplane and receive his fellow Soldier. We will then turn off the seat belt sign."
Without a sound, all went as requested. I noticed the Sergeant saluting the casket as it was brought off the plane, and his action made me realize that I am proud to be an American. So here's a public "Thank You" to our military Men and Women for what you do so we can live the way we do.
Red Fridays.
Very soon, you will see a great many people wearing Red every Friday. The reason? Americans who support our troops used to be called the "silent majority." We are no longer silent, and are voicing our love for God, country and home in record breaking numbers. We are not organized, boisterous or overbearing.
Many Americans, like you, me and all our friends, simply want to recognize that the vast majority of America supports our troops. Our idea of showing solidarity and support for our troops with dignity and respect starts this Friday -- and continues each and every Friday until the troops all come home, sending a deafening message that .... Every red-blooded American who supports our men and women afar, will wear something red.
By word of mouth, press, TV -- let's make the United States on every Friday a sea of red much like a Homecoming football game in the bleachers. If every one of us who loves this country will share this with acquaintances, coworkers, friends, and family, it will not be long before the USA is covered in RED and it will let our troops know the once "silent" majority is on their side more than ever, certainly more than the media lets on.
The first thing a Soldier says when asked "What can we do to make things better for you?" is, "We need your support and your prayers." Let's get the word out and lead with class and dignity, by example, and wear something red every Friday. -From K stateside: Voices of our parents . . . remembering why we’re Airmen
“I’m just so thankful for what he’s become. He was a skinny, asthmatic kid with average grades, and his father and I really weren’t sure how he was going to do. We’re so proud of him – finishing college and getting his commission were just things we really only dreamed about. Yes, we’re worried that he’s over there, and we know it’s dangerous, but we know there are others just like him there who will take care of him just as he’s taking care of them. He told me he is going to fly home in a couple weeks, going through Germany, and that he’ll call from there – I can’t wait for that call, because I know he will finally be safe.”
“I really appreciate your letter. She emails me every day from her base in Iraq. She told me about a few attacks that came at night. The mortars and grenades scared her, but she got up the next morning and did her job. She is lonely sometimes, and in her last emails she said she really wants to come home. She said the food is OK, but when she is not working, she can be very bored. Her best friend there just left for the US last week, and that was hard on her. I am so proud of my daughter. I do not think I could have done what she is doing when I was her age. She is very strong.”
“I take my hat off to all you servicemen. This is not any easy war to fight, and sometimes I just really don’t think we should be over there. But Jason’s emails and digital pictures tell me a story I don’t hear on the television – there are stories of such goodness that I just have to believe we’re making a difference in Afghanistan. He’s emailed me copies of his base newspaper, and I’ve shared these with our friends – you just don’t see this stuff on the news. He told me that he wanted us to send a couple boxes of pencils and paper and such, because his squadron was going to visit a school. Our Sunday School class put together 26 boxes, and we sent them over. He told me the guy at the post office there told him that when that we he came to get the packages, he should bring a couple friends and a truck to take it all away! The pictures he sent me from their visit to the school were awesome.”
These are the voices of a few of our parents – parents of Airmen who’ve deployed, including two from my own squadron. I’ve received letters in response to ones I sent them, and their words remind me that they actually understand some of what we feel about being deployed – fear, loneliness, tension, boredom. They’re often tense, and scared, and lonely, and maybe even bored a bit while we’re deployed. But I also hear their pride, and awe – some of the same emotion and patriotism many of us Airmen experienced when we committed to an enlistment or a commission so many years ago.
Our reasons for staying in the Air Force beyond our initial commitments are varied – family responsibilities, job satisfaction or security, continued travel opportunities, educational benefits and the like. I’ve always heard it said that “we don’t stay in for the reasons that we came in for” – and I think that’s largely true. There are, surely, still many, many patriots among us Airmen, and I’m refreshed to know that our parents, while understandably concerned for our well-being or national objectives overseas, are so supportive and appreciative of what we do.
As our wing gears up for another large AEF cycle, with several hundred of us likely headed “downrange” in the next couple months, perhaps it’s more important than ever that we remember why we “crossed over into the blue” – many of our parents sure seem to! I’m sure I need to guard against allowing my day-to-day struggles with the everyday routine – administrative work, training or even preparing for our operational readiness inspection – to divert me from keeping my eye on the ball. It’s very easy to get distracted by all the things we allow to fill up our lives. Casualty reports on the news, and the occasional letter from a concerned parent, remind me that Americans we know, and even more that we don’t, are in harm’s way on our behalf every day. I hope what I’m doing sustains them in some fashion until it’s my turn to be deployed. May God be with them, and the families we left behind, and the parents who enabled them to be what they are now.
Brian W. from Germany writes… "This is the kind of web site I envision for the PMOC-E with the local PMOC groups dovetailing into it some how with their own local links. I am very impressed with what they have done and challenge us to do something like it."
Chris B. from Papua New Guinea wrote… "Dude, great site, lots of info. I like hot dog events, reminds me of times back at Yongsan!"
...and from El Paso, TX Folks, I personally love your website. I'm in Texas and feel closer to you in Japan than those here in El Paso! Keep the faith, fight the good fight and we'll keep the candle lit in the front window for you! Dennis
-Mike in Okinawa wrote: No one will ever remember what you accomplished but they will always remember how you made them feel. Author UnkNice thoughts...
The following message came from my friend, Dick, in Germany. Author unknown... Dancing With God
When I meditated on the word Guidance,
I kept seeing "dance" at the end of the word.
I remember reading that doing God's will is a lot like dancing. When two people try to lead, nothing feels right. The movement doesn't flow with the music, and everything is quite uncomfortable and jerky. When one person realizes that, and lets the other lead, both bodies begin to flow with the music. One gives gentle cues, perhaps with a nudge to the back or by pressing Lightly in one direction or another. It's as if two become one body, moving beautifully. The dance takes surrender, willingness, and attentiveness from one person and gentle guidance and skill from the other. My eyes drew back to the word Guidance. When I saw "G: I thought of God, followed by "u" and "i". "God, "u" and "i" dance." God, you, and I dance. As I lowered my head, I became willing to trust that I would get guidance about my life. Once again, I became willing to let God lead. My prayer for you today is that God's blessings and mercies be upon you on this day and everyday. May you abide in God as God abides in you. Dance together with God, trusting God to lead and to guide you through each season of your life.
This prayer is powerful and there is nothing attached. If God has done anything for you in your life, please share this message with someone else, for prayer is one of the best gifts we can receive. There is no cost but a lots of rewards; so let's continue to pray for one another. And I Hope You Dance!!!!!!!!
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