Four-time Stanley Cup winner and Red Wings legend Darren McCarty shares his Divine Encounter in Jerusalem!
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Listen, I'm very spiritual right, but I'm not religious
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right? I get the difference but also to
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is that this is a perfect conversation because now with my
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belief system, the fact that I'm still alive through everything
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that I've gone through the ups and downs.
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And it's more of the fact of I honestly I'm 50 years old to see
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that my career in hockey was to give me, you know, it's just for
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you to pay attention when I talk right.
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But it's really based on faith. And I really, if you want to
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know that like I'll sit here and I'll tell you is that, hey, like
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my if you think that I'm an apostle, or I might be whatever
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those guys were, but the word like have this relationship with
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God because I tell everybody, I got a hotline, I got the bat
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phone, I've had it since I was a little Kid, but nobody believed
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in me or whatever for whatever reason, the faith in somebody
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greater than yourself or that I wasn't, the end-all-be-all was
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out, was easy, you know, like that relationship.
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But I look back and I always had and and no matter what Whether
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it was like they call it prayer, they call it whatever.
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But I would have this open conversation as a little kid,
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right? I grew up in a fan like I grew
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up in my last names McCarty, but that's not my birthday.
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My birthday was friend caught it.
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I was adopted by Craig McCarthy when I was five years old, when
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my mom remarried, I didn't get along with Craig McCarty, but
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yet, today I live by the principles that he taught me.
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So I needed a male figure in my life and I just said, I'm going
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to the top, I'm going to go to God.
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Yeah, in my thing like, something greater and I would
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always ask and you can't tell me because it was always like, it's
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always about doing the work and, and trying to be a better person
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and stuff like this, but I understand Through everything
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else. And the biggest thing is I sit
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here, you know, they think this gives the Coles notes of it
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because I the greatest thing that I did personally and
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realize it now was in 2019, I was able to go to Israel with
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the Russian Five. The rush of the documentary, The
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Russian Five turn that was about our Russian players so mice.
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I went on that slab of 40 Soph over and Igor over in Russia.
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You in stuff like this and we spent some time with Jenny,
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fedorovich and Josh, real who created it, and at a lot of the
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people there, but I got the experience to go to the wall,
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right? Where civilization where they
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say the center of the, you know, whatever the faith, and
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everything that the wall of the mustard bottle the Western Wall.
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Yeah. Walk right down there.
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In fact, I have this tattoo right here was done and all
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Jerusalem by a Third generation. And they did it old school,
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tapping it in, right? So, so just I felt really at
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home, but my whole point is, is this anybody who hasn't
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experienced you walk down the Western Wall and it's separated
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two male and female, right? It's not loud but there's this
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hum there, there's this like spiritual hum and you can feel
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it, but everybody's, you know, and it's all different
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ethnicities. He's color when it doesn't
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matter when you go to the wall and this is what I would, would,
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my experience was that when you're there and you're immerse,
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is that, it's just, you and him, or you, and what you believe to,
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whatever. It's very silent personal.
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And it's not like you do anything, but when I left, when
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I came back, The biggest thing that I got and I guess through
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trials and tribulations and through all the different things
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that I've been through through the for Recovery Rehabilitation
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programs, the NHL's put me through the million dollars in
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my head, my my faith, the 12-step program, all came to the
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Head where I walked away from there and and what it was is my
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antenna to receive the message. That is out there, is that an
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all-time high? Now it just keeps getting better
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because I nurture it. It and I listened, and I do all
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these different different things and whether what I believe in,
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but the bottom line is, there's some, there's something that is
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greater than me. That I don't have this almost
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control that has helped guide me to meet to me.
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It's for that. It's God, you know, but it's
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that. But I have a personal one-on-one
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relationship, man. I, he'll walk into his office,
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and all my feet up on his desk. Tell me to get them down, but I
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feel that comfortable to do that.
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You know what I said? Like every now and then he gives
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me he gives me a slap but not as much anymore because I feel like
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it's just there's a purpose for me, right?
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And the purpose, I have all the stats and the decorations in the
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metals with my hockey career, but I think with my just
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celebrating seven years sobriety after having fight my whole
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life, I just try to lead by example and my faith is This is
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number one to that, but it's always been there and I've gone
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through life ignoring it. Yeah, not want know what I'm
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doing? Not the right thing.
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I don't want it you know I know he could see me all the time and
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stuff like this but I'm just going to ignore him.
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I don't do that anymore. But anybody else I tell you that
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take my hot line, all you got to do is say hey I'm using D-Max
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hotline right now. Boom he'll answer right away.
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Just you got a it's but I look back and it's awesome.
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Can because I look back and it's always been there.
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Yeah, always, it's always been there.
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I can describe it in a different, a different way, you
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know, maybe sometimes it's been, it's like having different pets,
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right? Sometimes it's a dog, sometimes
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it's a cat sometimes, but it's always been there and it's it's
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what I've realized. It's how how do I want to
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nurture it? And everybody.
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This is your life to live so you can live it any way you want.
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But if you see, I always look at For people that have something
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that I that I want. What do they do to get it?
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Now, number one, you got to do the work, doesn't matter what it
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is, you have to do the work. So what are you willing to do
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the work God? And for me self-discovery, the
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number one rule is don't lie to the person in the mirror, right?
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Well, when you look in the mirror, it's like having a
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conversation. It's, what do you nurture it?
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It's like you're having a conversation with the God and
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that God is you You inside of you carrying you to whatever
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else you have the faith that, you know, so greater than
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oneself. And that's It's, it's like
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meditation. It's like, it's like anything
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else is that? It's frustrating because
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sometimes when we want it the most, we want to get it, we want
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to get it but when I guess I'm here to tell you is that you've
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already got it. It says, you might be looking in
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the wrong room, right? You're looking for it.
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It's got to be, it's not linear, it's not cut and dry, it's not
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this to everybody else, but it's, it's there.
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You know, it's the same thing. What room are you looking in?
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Do you look in scriptures? What what's your focus for your
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faith? My focus to my faith is
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compassion. Compassion for our fellow human
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beings, and the more I had. Somebody upsets me, I got to
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understand, I got to empathize and try to put myself so.
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So if there's and and so here's the one thing to Ken is yes, I
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have a, I have a Bible actually my I have a new testament,
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little ones laying around, or whatever that that I love to
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just open up. And there's a message in there
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that I need to hear. I just have faith in that if I
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need that a lot of times, no, but it's like finding a lot of
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my is through, like, if I go through Facebook, or if I go
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through the and ic+ clamps or I see people that need to hear
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something. That's, I don't second question
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and I just read Tweet it because it might not be like I put it
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this way and people used to always close to me, used to
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always like, text me or are you okay?
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Are you okay until they realize that when I tell them is that,
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oh, the same for me. This is for, I know somebody
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needs to hear this because I did at some point.
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You know what I'm saying? So a lot of the messages that I
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throw out aren't for me, but it's, but I've been I've learned
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that lesson along the way and I know that Buddy.
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And I always believed that, like I said, the ability to receive
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the message. If I meditate her, I concentrate
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and and that's become more of a More of a, more of a constant.
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Like, I don't, I'm not one of these people to get up everyday
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meditates, or whatever like that, but I looked for something
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to pin the day on. Yeah, maybe it's a song, maybe
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it's maybe it's like, okay, so we're recording this Monday
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afternoon after the Detroit Lions, just the 13 games in a
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row and what beat the New York Giants and, you know, like stuff
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like that. So it's to enjoy the journey
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part of. It doesn't mean their playoff
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team doesn't mean whatever, but It's a little different than for
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my Lions Phantom. So I'm going to enjoy that
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today, right? If that makes sense.
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Sure. Yeah.
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When you say that you've always known, did you have an
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introduction at some point of Faith or hearing or what you're
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talking about is daily prayer, it just doesn't sound.
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You're just using day-to-day terminology and not viable term.
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Yeah, no. I think sometime terminology
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throws people off. Right.
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So you just gotta do you. And and so this is so
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everything. I'm talking about is everything
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you could break down that I'm following.
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Like you said, oh this that or whatever.
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Okay, that's cool but I look at it just like this.
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You know, and and and, and that's what I really like.
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When I look into different things and and like, as far as
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history, I'm a huge history guy because I believe that you're
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destined to repeat things unless you know why you did them.
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So if you want to positively repeat them, then you keep doing
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it. But if you want to change, it
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needs to change. And I think history is a great
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teacher. Not only personally but you
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know, through the centuries and all that stuff.
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And and a lot of times to it's it's when you have Have you need
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the right person to translate? What what you're thinking?
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Does that make sense? Yeah.
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Because a lot of people get lost, they don't know where to
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go. I have a saying, don't tell me
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what, tell me, who, I don't care what you're what, you're
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peddling, what you're selling, what you're all about.
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I care who you are and I invest in the people and the people,
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right? And then it's like, oh, okay.
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Well you do this or you do that, but it's having an investment in
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the Fellow human beings. So for me, you asked me that
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question? No, the first thing and and it's
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not more apropos to say but I think God got a real liking to
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me back when I was like 3 or 4 years old and Sunday school.
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When when the Sunday School Caesar says, hey, do you want to
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come up and sing a song? And I sang Rhinestone, Cowboy by
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Glen Campbell instead of, you know, Jesus loves me.
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So I think God is. He see to me?
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He's got my sense of humor. Yeah, so he treats me in that
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way. And I think everybody's is a
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sort of the same thing. The one, the whole, the energy
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is all that different stuff. So, self awareness and self
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discovery is a huge thing for me, and like you said, there's
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tons of ways to find it. I like to find it.
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And, and people, you know, I like to, like people teach me
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every day. You want to leave your mark?
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You and make a positive impact where specifically do you have a
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focus? The, the one thing is, is that
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we're a human being you're supposed to make mistakes, but
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don't make the same ones twice. And to know that there is that
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no matter what, I like all the, all the saying this too shall
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pass, you know, the like about the unit that just the one thing
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is you're not alone. You're not alone.
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Find that person to answer your questions.
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There's either two types of Where I'm at in my life, you're
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either here to ask me, what do you mean by that?
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Or were you here to fight? It's either black or white.
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Right? Because I exude the person that
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I am and what I'm into and and what I believe and I want people
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to, you know, who have questions about it.
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Yeah, we can disagree. You can question that but I know
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my truth and that's the biggest thing is that I'm going to live
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my might Truth, I think that if you ask me that kind of comes to
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me, is that I'm the type of person and I pride myself on
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this. Is that?
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All you have is your word and I'm if I tell you once I'm going
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to show you twice. So I learned a long time ago and
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I'm fortunate. Like I said, guys, I have a
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million dollars In this head of different things where I was
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taught that my heart virtue which which is what makes you
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tick. Mine is vulnerable truth with
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Integrity, explains March 26th Lemieux that I had to stand up
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in front of if it explains my battle with addictions and and
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now seven years of how it's not about me anymore but it's about
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showing people that it can be done and without You know, like
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the having that to me, God is that ultimate parental?
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Figure that like he always I trust him now but it's like I
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believe and and trust that his way is better.
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I'm lucky because it's sort of in the end don't get it twisted
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but it's along the lines of the Red Wing organization and Steve
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Yzerman. When We're talking about hockey,
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the hashtag wiser plan, it's the same thing, because he's in
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charge of getting this organization back to Greatness,
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that's why it will work out. I look at, you know, God or
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whatever like that. And the same thing, but it
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sounds that, you know, one of the things that comes up Ken
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that I think about is, and I never got this right where I
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always said that my different because I I never got that like
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the Holy Spirit like the the Holy Trinity, right?
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3, & 1 or whatever. To me, it's three different
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people. You can convince me that the
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Holy Spirit God or the same, but Jesus is son.
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Do you understand? Like, my brain doesn't work that
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way. They work as two different
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people, right, soul? I'm or look at Jesus is a
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brother learns things from him but God is the ultimate father.
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And that's right. Raw, I don't know.
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That's just their McCarty's breakdown of How he looks at
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things. Maybe you look at it may I know
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that if here's the thing, I know that if I think that there's a
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ton of other people that think that too, I'm not special in
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that way, right? But it's just I'm the one that's
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going to come out and go. Hey anybody like messed up with
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this? I can't comprehend this.
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There's like does that make sense?
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And I think that when you there's a vulnerable when you're
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when you're real, when you real and that's all it is.
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And I think here's the one thing can and I love this and I
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appreciate having this conversation.
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Because what's the big, the big thing out there for men?
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These days mental health, right? It's okay to cry and it's okay
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to tell her feelings, right? Well, this is a to me as along
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with the mental health that you should be secure, whether you're
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insecure, you don't have a clue, but it's okay.
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If you don't that you're asking. Questions.
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Well, you know, I don't get it, but you're asking questions and
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you, I believe, we all believe in something.
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Yeah. Right.
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You know, I believe a lot of people think that they're the
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end-all-be-all also. Right.
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I don't think that's the truth. And I think that more.
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So when people don't have that higher power faith in them and
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and maybe their higher power. That the thing is that think,
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it's aliens, that's cool too, but it's along the same concept
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that you aren't in control. And I think that's the biggest
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thing. And you don't have to be, but
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you can have faith. See, I'm lucky.
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Here's how it works in my world. This is the way God works in my
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world, I do the right things, he rewards me for it, not with what
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I want, but he shows me like I see them and receive the
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message. Now, of, maybe I can see where
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he's leading me sooner that I could in the past, right?
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Because the, I definitely think that there's a bigger purpose
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for me in his eyes of of, for everything in my history.
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That I'm still alive. Yeah.
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So so that's where I come from. I'm like so your chosen one in
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that and I think that now I'm 50 years old.
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It doesn't matter, but as we get older, we've all lost friends.
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The sickness to addictions to to the to the military to but we
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can all We are, but if you're still here, you're still here
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for a reason. I always believed that.
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Yeah. I think, sometimes you're here
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for a reason, not just for a purpose for other people
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sometimes because you haven't had those questions answered
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yet. Absolutely.
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See like, that's where I don't know where this stands, but I
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believe in like if we I firmly believe that we're back on this
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Human Experience. Because we had come like the,
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you know, we come from there, right?
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We come back to experience what it's like to because, you know,
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if you don't if you only know Bliss and everything else, then
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you don't know the rest, I believe that, for lack of a
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better term, there's like ten levels.
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And then, once you reach the 10th level, then you go back
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home, so to speak. But some people go through light
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and they, they might be stuck on the fourth level.
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It's like School almost. But it's Chu ality and you grow
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in your growth. I, you know, for me personally,
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I probably think I'm on, like level 7, you know, like 77 like
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there's more to learn. I've learned some I can because
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it's, because now the picture starts to play out.
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Right? I'm a big, 30 corked.
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I know. And I'm and I'm the, I used to
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be a guy that You know don't actually do the its let's do it
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and don't worry about the cot. Like there's no such thing as
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consequences will be alright and just you know, fire behind and a
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lot of that had to do with with not knowing when it was going to
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end You know, a lot of it at all.
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So to my personal journey is in the last 7 years, really
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learning, who Darren McCarty is to Darren McCarty, and who
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Darren McCarty wants to be? And that's the kind
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compassionate, you know, face vulnerable truth with Integrity
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because other people can't. So, you know, I'm the one that's
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going to be first into the fight or you know, first into the
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house in the fight. It's just The way that I'm
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built, but it's also too. Is that you got to understand is
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that I also had to realize that I can't want anything more than
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you want it for yourself because if I'm paying too much attention
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trying to make you get it, when you don't want to do the work,
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I'm missing out on the person behind me that I can't see,
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that's waving their hand saying, I'll do the work, I'll do the
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work, help me, help me and that That doesn't that doesn't work
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anymore for me. So as much as I might have some
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personal feelings or we might be friends and we might have grew
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up together. If you're not going to do the
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work on, whatever it is, you're going to do it.
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That doesn't sit well with me so that's just because I hold
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myself accountable and everything that I say I listen
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to and if I'm not you know, some days I'm better than other but I
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strive to be better every day than I was the day before.
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Some days, it's good some days, it's not but I know that at all
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and the funny thing is just getting your spoke people think
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we all go through those moments. No matter who you are.
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Right? Where where You have doubts,
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and, and life sucks. And you wish things were
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different. That's when I implore people to.
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It's okay to have a conversation and, and, you know, just be as
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real, as real as you can. Yeah.
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And and then, here's the thing, if it's out there, it's out
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there how it comes back. Is none of your
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responsibilities, your responsibility just to
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acknowledge when you see that sign because that is for you.
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You see it? It's there for a reason.
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Yeah, I mean you may not know it but you're quoting the Bible
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almost the whole time, you know? Yeah, seek and you will find
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knock and the door will be opened.
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You just got to make the first. Well, just got a question and
00:21:55
you'll get answers can. Here's a lot of the things,
00:21:57
right? When I read the Bible and stuff,
00:21:59
man, I fall asleep, because the words and the old taxes, and the
00:22:03
be speaketh, cometh pieces. We need a way of the, we need to
00:22:07
do need a gurney Mac, right? Towards the fact, that when you
00:22:11
Did you understand when you say that to me and you go?
00:22:14
Oh well the amount that's in Psalms.
00:22:16
When I be like, oh I didn't know that but cool because you could
00:22:20
see The reception of the message, right?
00:22:24
I I'm I'm learning it somehow and maybe you need to learn it.
00:22:28
Learn it like me, but it's okay. If you're like, man, this
00:22:31
thing's I can't get through the, the I don't know what it means.
00:22:36
Can tell me what it means, and then they go.
00:22:39
Well, yeah, dude you're doing it.
00:22:40
He can, you will find all these different things.
00:22:43
Yeah. Yeah.
00:22:44
It's all true. I mean, you're fooling yourself
00:22:46
if you just memorize some Bible verses and it never sank in and
00:22:52
Not living it. You can figure it out and live
00:22:55
it. And like you said, have no idea
00:22:57
where that came from or what book, or who wrote the thing or
00:23:01
as long as you know, but you also thought, but here's the
00:23:03
whole thing, so you can. So, if you would say, for lack
00:23:06
of a better term, I reverse engineered, right?
00:23:09
So, feel free to reverse-engineer it.
00:23:11
Where, where that's why I find? Like you said, the affirmations,
00:23:17
are the messages that I send, you know, I use on my my Darren
00:23:21
McCarty cos be Facebook to to, you know, share around because
00:23:26
it's not necessarily for me, it's for other people.
00:23:29
But a lot of those messages, I'm sure if I was sitting next to
00:23:32
somebody who is well versed in the Bible would say oh that
00:23:35
that's that is comes from here. That comes from here because I
00:23:39
think a lot of it does compassion and kindness, right?
00:23:42
That's right. It's the Corso.
00:23:45
All right, speaking of I appreciate your compassion and
00:23:47
kindness spending the time here. It's been a great conversation.
00:23:51
No, I appreciate it. Anytime Ken and I'm always
00:23:54
always willing to learn because that's the whole thing, there's
00:23:57
no right or wrong in this, right?
00:23:59
But the fact that you, and I are having this conversation that
00:24:02
that we do have faith to something greater than
00:24:05
ourselves. Maybe it'd help somebody else
00:24:07
out because I wasn't always here, but I always knew he was
00:24:14
around. Now, it's just maybe I can help
00:24:17
translate to the help youth, like like you said, I do it
00:24:21
might be machism. So I do it my way, but I think I
00:24:24
figured like, there's something that he's cool with it, because
00:24:28
he's led me down this path. You know, I'm telling you, Daddy
00:24:31
Mack truck. He was shot me a lot earlier if
00:24:33
I was doing it wrong, Now, it's just maybe I can help translate
00:24:19
to the help youth, like like you said, I do it might be machism.
00:24:22
So I do it my way, but I think I figured like, there's something
00:24:26
that he's cool with it, because he's led me down this path.
00:24:29
You know, I'm telling you, Daddy Mack truck.
00:24:31
He was shot me a lot earlier if I was doing it wrong,