Le Grand Retour...

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"The work goes on,

the cause endures, the hope still lives

and the dreams shall never die..."

Edward Kennedy

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Me, myself, I - admiring the Mont Blanc chain of mountains...
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Where i've been ?

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i've been here, there, elsewhere -

living, learning, understanding but also

coping and searching...

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i've been here, there, elsewhere -

working, developing, exploring but also

failing and struggling...

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i've been here, there, elsewhere -

travelling, observing, listening but also

experiencing and suffering...

..

i've been here, there, elsewhere -

giving, receiving, helping, but also

needing and doubting...

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i've been here, there, elsewhere -

searching, finding, creating but also

forgetting and losing...

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i've been here, there, elsewhere -

loving, laughing, remembering but also

crying and hurting...

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i've been here, there, elsewhere -

improving, succeeding, rejoicing but also

hoping and praying...

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Tell me,

where have you been ?

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Thanks for all your kind words left in my absence; I'll be, hopefully,

catching up with all your blogs asap...

A Propos de Moi...

.

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i am sunshine and tropical rain

i am raw silk and blue jeans
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i am belly laughs, giggles and smiles
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i am regrets and disappointments, made whole

by hopes and dreams
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i am walking toward the future
with my eye turned toward the past

i am me...

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Who are you..?

My African Childhood...

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“There is a garden in every childhood,
an enchanted place where colors are brighter,
the air softer,

and the morning more fragrant than ever again”
Elizabeth Lawrence

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Wenchi, 1963
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Some of my favorite memories of my childhood

are not my memories at all,

they are my mother’s...

The stories she tells are of a toddler who is strong willed

and determined.

A child who knows her mind and is not going to let anyone

make her change it.

A two year old who loathed the indoors and loved nothing more than

to spend entire days in the great outdoors.

A three year old who ate her dinner with her fingers

(or not at all)

because it was better that way.

A four year old who knew an entire neighborhood
by name and was considered very much part of each family
and the community.

A five year old who who spoke fluent Twi (the local dialect)

and loved nothing better than to help her
parents out when they couldn't quite make themselves

understood...

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I love that girl. I’ve missed her.

On My Desk Today...

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A very good non-blogging friend of mine,

(whom I suspect will soon be blogging as she's so full of great, fun ideas for posts...)

asked me to either show, or write a list of,

what's on my desk today;

so, here goes...

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source

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commissioned translation ready to send
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strategically placed strong morning coffee
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my FiloFax i use everyday
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photo of Husband and Daughters
beautifully framed by a very dear friend
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West African fabric samples and beads that inspire
me endlessly
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handwritten cards and letters to friends across the globe
to send tomorrow
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mobile phone
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painting by Daughter that i love beyond words
(awaiting frame so I can hang it above my desk)
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friend's CV that needs updating by him before i can
translate
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collage in progress for a dear friend in need of
home decorating inspiration
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the usual suspects...

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If you'd like to join me, please do

- i'd love to see, and/or read on your blog,

what's on your desk today...

Better late than never...

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I was tagged quite a while ago, by a non-blogging friend,

and asked to use the letters of my middle name
to say things about me
that you may not already know...
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One of the several Sri lankan families that I, personally, sponsor...
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I - Inconcistant: as in the inconsistency of this blog’s tone,
which, as I've said before, must be very frustrating

for some readers...
I'm passionate about so many different things, have so many different

facets to my personality, and, am so fiercely
independant, that I'd hate to feel constricted, particularly here,
of all places, on my blog..!
So I guess I'll just carry on posting
whatever I feel like...

.N - NGO: we created, with the help of friends,
family, neighbours...a humanitarian NGO in the wake of the 2004
SE Asian Tsunami, to help the poorest of the poor

'forgotten victims' in the SW of Sri Lanka.
We currently have an entire village (Gonagola) up and running
(complete with primary school, water pump, medical clinic and
cooperative providing jobs for the fishermens' widows and their children...)
and practically self-sufficient...

D - Dalai Lama: as in, the spiritual leader of
Tibetan Buddhism,
whose philosophical teachings I follow...

I - Independent: as in, I am (fiercely) independent:
Definition :
1. free from the influence or control of others
2. not relying on the support (esp. financial support) of others
3. capable of acting for oneself or on one's own


A - Aware: as in, I like to know what’s going on,
although not in a gossipy way.
I don’t watch the TV news as I don’t like its slant on things
I take my news via Newspapers or Internet,
where I can click off when something is too disturbing
but also seek out feel good stories on my own...

I am the type of lady who...

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° is camera shy but doesn't mind sharing photos

of herself as a child...

(however awful they be..!)

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Kumasi, Ghana, early 1970s

- I'm the one on the L looking rather like "the village idiot"..!

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.° believes in you,

even when you don't believe in yourself...

° reads poetry in Spanish, translates it to French

then to English and

back once again to Spanish...
(needless to say, the resulting poem is never the same as the original..!)

° is never properly dressed when the storm hits...

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° adores ballgowns, fancy party frocks and really high heels,

but would look, and feel, ridiculous

if she were ever to wear them..!

° is extremely aware of her surrounding environment

and does all she can to preserve it...
(through recycling, organic gardening...etc)

° loves a big hug...
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° is the same size and shape

(flat chested, straight up and down - rather like a lamp post)

as she was at about fifteen..!

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° can be counted on to get the job done

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° eases the tension with a joke...

not always understood, here in France, I might add,

as she has a British sense of humour..!

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° will never, ever understand cricket rules...

° gives people multiple chances to redeem themselves

- she does this for better or worse...

° is a free spirit;

apparently hard to define by other's definitions...

° believes that she has a whole host of Guardian Angels,

right by her side...

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° would happily spend her life barefoot if she could...
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° has difficulty sitting still to watch a movie

- never watches TV and when at the movies only stays if the film

is really really good..!

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° would not know how to take herself seriously
but does know how and when to take others seriously..!
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° gets distracted whilst cooking and burns something...
..
° enjoys the finer things in life, but is equally happy

to "live like the locals" when travelling afar

- it's the only way to get a real feel for a country and its' people

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° answers your mail faster than she returns your phonecall
(unless it's urgent..!)
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° has great faith in humanity...

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° keeps her word, whatever...

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Tell me,

What type of lady/gentleman are you..?

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Africa on my mind...

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The colder it gets here

(-7 as I write),

the further afield my thoughts wander,

to much, much hotter climes...

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Not bad for a first attempt at Polyvore, n'est-ce pas..?

This post is inspired by the BBC series

(on their website way back in 2005)

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"why I love Africa"

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Here are a few of the many, many things

I love about Africa:

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I love the beauty of the vast starry sky and the stillness

of the night;

And I love the noise and colour of vibrant local markets,

where meeting friends and sharing in the life of the community

are more important than simply making profit.

I love sleeping outside, gazing up at God's handiwork

as I drop off to sleep;

And I love sitting inside with the door open when the rains

finally come,

watching silently with friends the pounding of water on the earth.

I love the sense of awe when a sandstorm

blows up;

And I love the joy and relief when the harvest is safely in.

I love that there is always time to talk, that people are more important

than the day's programme;

I love the generosity, that when you arrive at meal time,

you are invited to sit round the bowl and share whatever food there is;

And I love the hospitality, that when you arrive in the evening

you are invited to stay the night,

and a mat is laid out for you.

I love the sense of community - that when you go into a neighbour's yard,

you have no idea how many of the dozens of laughing children

there actually belong to that set of parents;

And I love it that family is important, and that the elderly are respected

and taken care of.

I love it that when you arrive somewhere, you don't do anything

until you have properly greeted everyone;

And I love it that when you leave, you are always sent on your way

with the blessing of God.

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What about you,

have you ever been to Africa..?

And what did you love

about it..?

Birthday Giveaway...

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It's my birthday today and what better way to celebrate than by
holding a giveaway..?

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Everyone who leaves a comment in my absence
(during the Christmas/New Year holiday break)
will be included in the draw...
.

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I'm not revealing what goodies I'll be offering but I'm sure you'll
just love them..!

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photo: stone chalet

.Meanwhile, I'm celebrating my special day on the ski slopes before heading

to Provence for the New Year festivities...

"And in the end,

it's not the years in your life that count

but the life in your years"

unknown

I do hope you all had a wonderful Christmas

I most definately did...

- thank you all for your warm wishes,

I'll be catching up with your blogs as soon as I get back...

Down Memory Lane...

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"La fortune tient moins aux possessions accumulées

qu'à la capacité de vivre avec peu"

Mike Horn,

Objectif : pôle nord de nuit, 2007

Images: Baileys Home and Garden

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"Fortune is less about accumulated possesions

than the capacity to live with little"

Mike Horn,
Objective : north pole by night, 2007

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Most days I feel like I'm still in my 20's, if not my late teens,

so, being reminded that I am now more than 20 years past my 21st birthday

somehow comes as a bit of a shock - plus, by the end of the month

I'll be another year older..!

Anyway, what I'm leading to, is, that

it doesn't seem that long ago that I was an undergraduate,

house-sharing in London with a group of great friends from around the world.

It was seeing the storage boxes and baskets above, the other day on the

Baileys Home and Garden

website that brought back vivid memories of the rather "original"

interior decoration we created.

Made up, mostly, of a collection of hand-me-down bric à brac and zillions of

wine boxes, trunks and wicker baskets of all sizes and shapes

for storage - none of which we paid much for as we were impercunious, to say the least,

and much preferred to spend the little money we had on books, travel and

entertainment..!

Now For Something Completely Different...

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Things I will never know...
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1. Why I never feel a foreigner - Here, There or Elsewhere,

yet always look like one, or so I'm told...

(everywhere except in Scandinavia, that is..!)
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2. How it feels to live in a new house.

I love to live in old homes - I don't think I could ever live in a new one;

it needs to have a history...

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3. Why I need absolute darkness and silence to sleep...

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4. How it feels to be short -
at 1M75 (5'9) I tower above most ladies my age;
particularly here in France...

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5. Why, unlike everyone else I know, given the choice between a big,

gooey slice of chocolate cake or a glass of the best red wine

and a slice of local goat's cheese, I'd choose

the latter every time...
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6. How it feels to be competitive -

I just don't do competition.
Even as an athlete, I only ever ran to improve my own times;

never, to be the winner...

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7. Why it's so difficult sometimes to know where to draw the line.

Even the line between what I should, or should not,

write on this blog...

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8. How to whistle - I can blow air - that's about

it, I'm afraid...

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9. Why no matter how much you care, some people

just don't care back.

Why can't we all just get along..?
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10. How it feels to drink to excess purely to get drunk

- I like my liver the way it is,

i.e. not in a jar...

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What will you never know?
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Here Today...

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i believe...

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My favourite *weathercock overlooking the orchard...

i believe in dreaming BIG but still being content
to live small...

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i believe that knowledge is an end in itself;

not just a step in the pursuit of the almighty

dollar/euro/pound...

i believe that if a job is worth doing, it's worth doing well...

i believe that actions speak louder than words...

i believe that my love of food, (sourcing, cooking, experimenting, eating...)

most certainly stems from my African childhood...
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i believe that every ending is simply

a new beginning...

i believe the opposite of religious belief is not atheism or secularism

or even humanism.

It is not an ‘ism’ - it is independence of mind, that’s all...

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i believe discretion is the better part of valor...

i believe men are like wine: some turn to vinegar,
but the best improve with age..!

I'd love to know what you believe..?

* I just love quirky weathercocks - this one is placed on my roof terrace...

Confession time...

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Who's been eating my croissant..?

said Daddy Bear..?!

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I have a confession to make...
I ADORE croissants -
the real thing, you know, the pure butter, light, flaky, melt in the mouth variety;
I'd easily go half way round the world to find the best
(luckily I don't have to)
HOWEVER
- and this is the bizarre part -
I only really LOVE the croissant "legs"..!
.
I think I can honestly say I've never eaten a whole croissant -
(I can almost hear words like obsessional behaviour, phobia, diet...etc flying around out there.

Honestly, you're way off the mark if that's what you're thinking...)
I just prefer to eat (any number of them of them if I'm really hungry..!)
"les pattes" (as they say in French)
and, quite frankly, as Husband and both Daughters
prefer the (bigger) middle part...
Well, tell me, do I need to analyze the issue further or even

follow some kind of analysis..?
I don't think so - nobody in the family does either...
(haha, wonder why..?!!)
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Your turn now folks...
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What's your oddest/quirkiest/most bizarre habit..?
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Reflections...

Things I Know For Sure...

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Laughing is good therapy.

No matter what, at the end of the day you can't recapture lost time.

Reading the instructions makes all the difference.

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What you do to others reflects on you.

My occupation does not define me.

No-one can see dust in candlelight.

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The older I get the more I appreciate my youth.

It is physically impossible to tickle yourself

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There is no recompense for the loss of one's self-respect

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I love the sounds of happiness.

Do not set your goals by what other people deem important.

Only you know what is best for you.

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It takes two to be a couple.

My position in the community does not define me.

I like my bed better than any other.

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Thoughts without action are only daydreams.

To attract friends you must be friendly.

No-one is ever going to take me camping...

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Never compare yourself with others.

It is because we are different that each of us is special.

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When you make big mistakes
You make smaller ones next time

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To attract love you must be loving.

They don't make movies like they used to...

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.I'd love to know what's on your list...

Me, myself, I...

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This is my version of a post a non-blogging

friend forwarded after reading it

on Misty Mawn...

.. .
i am, i was an adventurous little girl. i am, i was a free spirit.

i am, i was a dreamer. i am, i was a daughter. i am, i was a tree climber.

i am, i was an optimist. i am, i was unique.

i am, i was a beachcomber. i am, i was a NGO volunteer worker.

i am, i was an athlete. i am, i was a loyal friend. i am, i was a researcher.

i am, i was a doting mother. i am, i was a hopeless romantic.

i am, i was multi-lingual. i am, i was a thinker. i am, i was a world traveler.

i am, i was a lover. i am, i was a vegetarian. i am, i was an artist.

i am, i was a stargazer. i am, i was a translator.

i am, i was a listener. i am, i was an amateur photographer.

i am, i was a collector of memories. i am, i was a teacher.

i am, i was multi-cultural. i am, i was a management consultant.

i am, i was a gardener. i am, i was a god-mother.

i am, i was a capturer of blissful moments.

i am, i was and wanna be just me...

...and you are?

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Me, myself, I

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° As a multi-cultural person I am always somewhere in-between.
I never feel 100% me in any culture...

° I don't like people with no sense of humour, I've no idea how
to relate to them;
I find they take themselves too seriously...

° My friends are such a mixed bunch that I might dine in the best restaurants
in Paris one day and sit at a roadside food stall
in Africa (or the African quartier of Paris) eating with my fingers the next...
I am not at all elitist –
but I am extremely choosy who I spend my time with..!

° I do not fit into the established mould of a Mum.

There are things I do and things I do not do.
My daughters like me just the way I am though,

so I guess I can't be doing that badly...
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° I think customs and traditions are really important,
particularly in our detached society...
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