entrusting your five daughters to the Five Wounds of Christ is a deeply symbolic and spiritually rich gesture. In Catholic tradition, the Five Wounds of Christ—His pierced hands, feet, and side—are not only signs of His suffering but also fountains of mercy, healing, and divine love.
🙏 A Prayer of Entrustment to the Five Wounds of Christ
O Crucified Jesus,
With a heart full of love and trust, I entrust each of my daughters to the sacred wounds You bore for our salvation. May they find refuge, strength, and grace in Your Passion.
✋ To Your Right Hand, O Lord, I entrust my eldest daughter. May she be blessed with the grace of mercy and forgiveness, and may her hands always be instruments of charity and peace.
✋ To Your Left Hand, I entrust my second daughter. Grant her the strength to persevere in grace, and may she use her gifts to serve others with humility and joy.
🦶 To Your Right Foot, I entrust my third daughter. Guide her steps along the path of righteousness, and may she walk boldly in faith, never straying from Your truth.
🦶 To Your Left Foot, I entrust my fourth daughter. May she be steadfast in love and courage, and may her journey be marked by compassion and fidelity to Your will.
❤️ To Your Sacred Side, pierced for love of us, I entrust my youngest daughter. Enfold her in the depths of Your mercy, and may she always dwell close to Your Sacred Heart, where blood and water flowed for our redemption.
O Jesus, by Your holy wounds, protect them from all harm, sanctify their lives, and draw them ever closer to You. May they grow in holiness, wisdom, and love, and one day rejoice with You in eternal glory. Amen.
Since I have entrusted my five daughters to the Five Wounds of Christ, I am entrusting my two sons to two powerful and complementary aspects of Christ’s redemptive love:
🕊️ A Father’s Entrustment of His Children to the Wounds, Heart, and Blood of Christ
For Christopher Gabriel, Vincent Michael, Claire Theresa, Candace Faith, Dara Hope, Rachel Grace, and Nicole Patience
O Jesus, my Savior and Redeemer,
You bore the wounds of love for our salvation.
You opened Your Heart to pour forth mercy.
You shed Your Precious Blood to redeem and protect.
In humble trust, I place my children into Your divine care.
May each be sealed in Your grace, formed in Your truth,
and led by Your Spirit into the fullness of life.
✋ To Your Right Hand, O Lord,
I entrust Claire Theresa,
whose name echoes clarity and consecration.
May her hands be lifted in prayer and service,
and may she grow in wisdom and joyful holiness.
✋ To Your Left Hand,
I entrust Candace Faith,
whose name speaks of royalty and trust.
May she be steadfast in faith,
and may her life be a testimony to Your enduring love.
🦶 To Your Right Foot,
I entrust Dara Hope,
whose name carries wisdom and expectation.
Guide her steps in peace,
and may she walk with hope through every valley and mountain.
🦶 To Your Left Foot,
I entrust Rachel Grace,
whose name recalls beauty and blessing.
May she walk humbly with You,
and may grace flow through her words and deeds.
❤️ To Your Sacred Side,
I entrust Nicole Patience,
whose name means “victory of the people.”
May she dwell close to Your pierced Heart,
learning the strength of patience and the power of love.
❤️ To Your Sacred Heart,
I entrust Christopher Gabriel,
my Christ-bearer and messenger of strength.
Inflame him with divine charity,
that he may carry You into the world with courage and joy.
🩸 To Your Precious Blood,
I entrust Vincent Michael,
my conqueror and defender.
Clothe him in Your strength,
that he may stand firm in truth,
and be a protector of the weak and a warrior for the good.
O Jesus,
By Your wounds, heal them.
By Your Heart, love them.
By Your Blood, protect them.
May they grow in virtue,
walk in holiness,
and one day rejoice with You in eternal glory.
Amen.
NIC’s Corner
My people will live in a peaceful country, in secure dwellings and quiet resting places. Isaiah 32:18
· Bucket List trip: Rich vs Poor Tour: 5-Ireland vs. 218-Mozambique
o Ireland: Living in Ireland offers a high quality of life, with strong healthcare, safety, and education systems, and it consistently ranks among the best countries to live in globally. While the cost of living is relatively high—comparable to the U.S.—Ireland boasts a longer life expectancy (83.1 years vs. 77.4 in the U.S.) and a higher quality of life index. However, newcomers often find the weather damp and chilly, and housing can be expensive and less insulated than in other developed countries.
§ Ireland’s per capita GDP is high primarily because multinational corporations, especially in tech and pharmaceuticals, report large profits there due to favorable tax policies, inflating economic figures beyond domestic productivity.
o Mozambique: Living in Mozambique offers a low cost of living and vibrant cultural and natural beauty, but it comes with significant challenges such as limited healthcare, underdeveloped infrastructure, and widespread poverty. Life expectancy and access to services are well below global averages, making daily life more difficult compared to most developed countries.
§ Mozambique’s per capita income is low due to widespread poverty, limited industrialization, and a heavy reliance on small-scale agriculture, which suffers from poor infrastructure, low productivity, and underinvestment.
o Cheat: Peri-Peri Shrimp
§ Stay at home: Colcannon
· Spirit Hour: Chrysanthemum cocktail
o Mojito!
· Let Freedom Ring Day 5 "Freedom from Cowardice" by Fr. Rick Heilman
· Day of the Flemish Community
· Get an indulgence
It Is Better to Fry in This Life Then the Next
National French Fry Day[8]
Whether you call them ‘French Fries’, ‘Chips’, Finger Chips, or French-Fried Potatoes, this delicious treat is loved around the world, and French Fries Day celebrates them. Not to be confused with the American ‘Chips’, which are thinly sliced pieces of potato fried until crisp, French Fries are the delicious result of ‘batons’ of potato cut to various thicknesses and then fried in oil. The outside of this staple companion food to hamburgers and other grease-ball favorites generally have a golden texture, varying from soft to crispy, and most often served with little more than a dusting of salt.
History of the French Fry
French Fries are one of many foods whose name is most misleading, as the origins of this fat fried food seem to be in Belgium. The story of their creation can be found in a family manuscript dated 1781, which reveals that potatoes were originally cut into the shape of fish and served in lieu of the fish normally caught in a series of small villages in Belgium. It seems the river had frozen over and the fish they normally caught and fried were unable to be caught. Why they’re called French is often attributed to troops coming over during World War I who got their hands-on Belgian Fries. The official language of the Belgian army at that time was French, and as a result the men thought they were in France rather than Belgium. Interestingly, in that region of the world, they are still called “Flemish Fries” to further complicate matters. Now these treats are loved the world round, even becoming the ‘national snack’ of the Netherlands.
How to Celebrate French Fries Day
With the popularity of French Fry, it’s not surprising that the world has come up with as many different varieties of this delicious food as you could imagine. So, one of the best ways to celebrate French Fries Day is to host a party dedicated to celebrating the international menu the fried potato has created. The simplest variation is simply to put chopped raw onions in some ketchup and eat them up like they do in the Netherlands. For the more adventurous, try some of the varieties below!
Canadian Poutine
This recipe is a classic way to have French Fries, originating in Canada. This dish is incredibly decadent, combining the crispy soft texture of the French Fries with a rich beef gravy, and topped with cheese curds.
American Bacon Cheeseburger Classic
There is little Americans love more than to add cheese and bacon to just about anything. French fries are no exception, there is little that is as well-loved as a rich, greasy accompaniment to any meal. To make this classic you start with a basic of fries, and layer on bacon, chopped onions, cheese, and ground hamburger before tossing them in the oven just long enough for everything to get melty. Then grab a handful and dig in!
Greek French Fries
The Mediterranean rarely fail at making an already delicious food rich and full of the smells of home. If you love the classic Greek flavors of parmigiano-reggiano or romano cheese, garlic, and oregano, then these fries are going to leave you smiling. The key ingredients here are Extra Virgin Olive Oil to fry them in, after which you toss them in garlic salt, Greek Oregano, and your choice of cheese such as those mentioned ahead. To get the full impact you’re going to want to stick to the white crumbly cheese of the region, the truly adventurous might use Mazithra cheese.
These are a few dishes that can help enhance French Fries Day, and really bring out the amazing versatility of this centuries old treat. So, get out your deep fryer, chop up some potatoes, and celebrate French Fries Day by eating yourself into a starch filled stupor!
mussels and fries[9]
Moules-frites—the Belgians discovered a perfect marriage. They steam their mussels in simple marinière style (flavored with a little chopped onion, celery, carrot, parsley, bay leaf, and thyme), and then serve heaping mounds of them.
o Salade niçoise
o Soupe à L’oignon
o Moules Marinières
o Crème brûlée
· Take a spiritual retreat
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Intentionally immerse yourself in a serene space
Let’s face it, it can be hard to find an ideal retreat location to retreat. Even vacations can become more work than they are worth. The space we surround ourselves in has a huge impact on our ability to find rest and renewal and to create and inspire.
Villa Maria del Mar is a house of hospitality for individuals and groups seeking a beautiful and serene space for prayer, planning, and healing.
Villa Maria Del Mar Features
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Complete Food Service
Dietary Accommodations
JULY 11 Friday-Memorial of
Saint Benedict, Abbot
Population
Day
Matthew, Chapter 2, Verse 21-22
He rose, took the
child and his mother, and went to the land of Israel. But when he heard
that Archelaus was ruling over Judea in place of his father Herod,
he was AFRAID to go back there. And
because he had been warned in a dream, he departed for the region of Galilee.
To
Joseph the gift of dreams and visions was given but to some is giving the gift
of tongues. To which many years ago (40 to be exact February 1975) at the bir
th
of my first-born daughter I had gone to the Gunpowder Inn,
in Bermuda, to celebrate her birth, with a couple of Native
American friends. At the time I was in the Navy Seabees, and we worked
together.
When
I had got there, all of the sudden, I got an overwhelming feeling that I needed
to speak in tongues to P. Graves and I did. I felt stupid and fearful, but I
spoke to him in languages I knew not and used sign, too. He told me I
used 800-year-old languages that only a handful of people knew. The simple
message from Christ was that he (P. Graves) who was the last living war chief
of the Blackfoot tribe was not to assume his chieftainship and to let his son
become chief or otherwise there would be much blood.
I
never heard from P. Graves again after 1974 but as far as I know; no Blackfoot,
has participated in any Wounded Knee violence.
Wounded
Knee: Trouble Continues At Pine Ridge
“The troubles at Wounded Knee were not over after the siege. A virtual civil war broke out between the opposing Indian factions on the Pine Ridge reservation, and a series of beatings, shootings and murders left more than 100 Indians dead. When two FBI agents were killed in a 1975 gunfight, the agency raided the reservation and arrested AIM leader Leonard Peltier for the crime. The FBI crackdown coupled with AIM’s own excesses ended its influence at Pine Ridge. In 1977, Peltier was convicted of killing the two FBI agents and sentenced to life in prison. To this day, Peltier’s supporters continue to maintain his innocence and seek a presidential pardon for him.”[1]
Copilot
Here's a
Catholic reflection on Mark Chapter 2, with a focus on its lessons about fear
and being afraid:
📖 Mark Chapter 2 — Summary
Mark 2
presents a series of encounters that reveal Jesus’ authority and provoke both
awe and opposition:
1. Healing
of the Paralytic (vv. 1–12)
Jesus forgives the sins of a paralyzed man before healing his body, shocking
the scribes who accuse Him of blasphemy. Jesus responds by demonstrating His
divine authority.
2. Call of
Levi (vv. 13–17)
Jesus calls Levi (Matthew), a tax collector, to follow Him. He then dines with
sinners, prompting criticism from the Pharisees.
3. Questions
about Fasting (vv. 18–22)
Jesus explains that His presence is like a wedding feast—fasting will come
later but now is a time of joy.
4. Lord of
the Sabbath (vv. 23–28)
When His disciples pluck grain on the Sabbath, Jesus defends them, declaring
that “the Son of Man is Lord even of the Sabbath.”
😨 Lessons on Fear and Being Afraid — Catholic
Perspective
1. Fear
of Divine Authority
The
scribes are disturbed when Jesus forgives sins (v. 7). Their fear is
theological: “Who can forgive sins but God alone?”
From a Catholic view, this moment reveals the divine identity of Christ and
prefigures the Church’s sacramental authority to forgive sins through the
priesthood (cf. CCC 1441–1442). The fear here is a misguided resistance to
divine mercy.
Lesson:
Fear can blind us to grace when we cling to rigid expectations or pride. True
faith requires humility before God’s authority.
2. Fear
of Association with Sinners
The
Pharisees are scandalized that Jesus eats with tax collectors and sinners (v.
16). Their fear is social, and moral concerned with purity and reputation.
Jesus
responds:
“I did
not come to call the righteous but sinners.” (v. 17)
This
reflects the Catholic understanding that Christ seeks the lost, and the Church
is a field hospital, not a museum of saints.
Lesson:
Fear of judgment or impurity must never override the call to mercy and
evangelization.
3. Fear
of the New
Jesus’
parables about new wine in old wineskins (vv. 21–22) speak to the fear of
change. The Pharisees resist the newness of Christ’s message.
In
Catholic theology, this points to the transformative power of grace. Christ
doesn’t patch the old; He makes all things new (cf. 2 Cor 5:17).
Lesson:
Fear of change can keep us from receiving the fullness of the Gospel. We must
let go of old patterns to be renewed in Christ.
4.
Freedom from Fear through Faith
The
friends of the paralytic show bold, fearless faith—tearing through a roof to
bring him to Jesus (v. 4). Their courage contrasts with the fear and skepticism
of the scribes.
Lesson: Faith often requires holy boldness. When fear tempts us to hold back, love and trust in Christ propel us forward.
Feast of Saint Benedict[2]
Saint Benedict was born in
Nursia in central Italy around the year 480. He was born to a noble family, and
after being homeschooled, he was sent to Rome to complete his education. The
teenaged Benedict was already turning toward the Lord, and when he went to Rome,
he was disappointed and dismayed by the lazy, extravagant ways of the other
young students. Benedict was born into a time of immense social upheaval. The
once grand Roman Empire was on its last legs. The ancient city of Rome was
crumbling due to decadence from within and attacks from without. Seventy years
before Benedict’s birth the city fell to the invasions of the barbarians. The
civil authority was in tatters, the city had been stripped of its grandeur, and
the Church herself was beset with corruption and theological arguments.
Benedict left the chaos of the city and sought a quiet place to study in the
mountains north of Rome. Near the town of Subiaco, he found a community of holy
men, and settled near them to pursue a life of prayer. Eventually Benedict was
asked to be the leader of the community. When that went wrong, he left to start
his own monastic community. One community soon grew to twelve, and to establish
these new communities on a sound foundation Benedict, wrote his simple Rule. We
mustn’t think of Benedict’s communities as the great monasteries that existed
in the Middle Ages. In the sixth century, Benedict’s small communities
consisted of perhaps twenty people. They scratched their living from the land
just like the other peasants with whom they lived. The only difference is that
Benedict’s monks observed celibacy, lived together and followed a disciplined life of prayer, work and study.
This simple, serious life was to prove a powerful antidote to the decadent
chaos of the crumbling Roman Empire. Saint Benedict died on March 21, 547.
After receiving Communion, he died with his arms outstretched, surrounded by
his brothers. He left behind a legacy that would change the world. The
monasteries became centers of learning, agriculture, art, and every useful
craft. In this way, without directly intending it, the monasteries deeply
affected the social, economic, and political life of the emergent Christian
Europe. The monastic schools formed the pattern for the later urban cathedral
schools, which in turn led to the founding of universities. In this way,
monasticism preserved and handed on the wisdom of both Athens and Jerusalem,
the foundations of Western civilization. It is for this reason that Saint
Benedict is named the patron of Europe. Benedict is a great figure in the
history of Western Europe, but his life and writings also give us a sure guide
for a practical spiritual life today. His practical Rule for monks in the sixth
century provides principles for Christian living that are as relevant and
applicable today as they have been for the last 1,500 years.
Things to do:
o
Practice the Liturgy of the Hours
Ora and Labora (Work
and Prayer)[3]
THE BENEDICTINE MONASTIC OFFICE
The Divine Office is at
the center of Benedictine life. Through it the monk lifts heart and mind to
Almighty God, and uniting himself to his confreres, the Church and the entire
world in offering God praise and thanks, in confessing his sins, and in calling
on God for the needs of all people. The office punctuates the day of the monk;
like a leaven awakening his soul to make the entire day, indeed the whole of
life, a gift of the self to God. Praying the hours puts the monk into the real
world, sanctifying his whole life and assisting him toward his goal of
unceasing prayer –
Ut In Omnibus Glorificetur Deus.
The Benedictine Office is
a rich collection of prayer that is based on the Rule of St. Benedict.
Historically it is distinct from the Roman Office – also recently called the Liturgy
of the Hours –
which, after the Second Vatican Council, was reshaped to simplify and make more
practical the prayer of the hours for the secular clergy, as well as the
religious who use it, and the laity who make it a part of their life of prayer.
In 1966 the Breviarium
Monasticum was the universal order of Divine Office for Benedictines. In that
year the monks were given a period of time for liturgical experimentation,
allowing each congregation of monasteries to adapt the tradition for its particular
use, under certain guidelines. To this day the Breviarium Monasticum remains “official” and the time of experimentation is
still in effect. In that circumstance, communities are using various forms of
the Divine Office, and a few communities have even elected to take the new
Roman Office (Liturgy of the Hours) as a convenient guideline because of its
universal use among the secular clergy.
The following is a brief,
general description of the centuries old Benedictine tradition of prayer in
word and action. Reference is made occasionally to the Roman Office as another
point of reference. The structure of the Office described below and outlined is
according to the use at St. Bernard Abbey in Cullman, Alabama.
|
Traditional
Monastic Hours |
New Roman
Office (Liturgy of the Hours) |
|
Matins (Vigils) |
Matins (Office of Readings) – any time of day |
|
Lauds |
Lauds (Morning Prayer) |
|
Prime |
Prime omitted in New Roman Office |
|
Terce |
Terce (Mid-Morning Prayer) |
|
Sext |
Sext (Mid-Day Prayer) |
|
None |
None (Mid-Afternoon Prayer) |
|
Vespers |
Vespers (Evening Prayer) |
|
Compline |
Compline (Night Prayer) |
Bible
in a Year-Day 22
Fr. Mike shows us how the faithfulness of Joseph in the Old Testament
foreshadows the faithfulness of St. Joseph, the husband of Mary, in the New
Testament. Today's readings are Genesis 41-42; Job 33-34 and Proverbs 4:1-9.
World Population Day[4]
World
Population Day seeks to draw attention to issues related to a growing global
population. The world's population as of April 2016, is over 7.4 billion.
The world's population is rapidly surging with birth rates on the rise
and life expectancy increases. Over the last century, between 1916 and
2012, global life expectancy more than doubled from 34 to 70 years while world
population has quintupled from 1.5 billion to 7.3 billion between 1900 and
2016.
In 1989, the United Nations designated July 11th as World
Population Day in an effort to garner attention for population issues and
crises such as displaced people, rights and needs of women and girls and population safety on a global
level. With an ever-growing world population, World Population Day serves to
highlight the challenges and opportunities of this growth and its impact on
planet sustainability, heavy urbanization, availability of health care and youth empowerment.
Agenda 2030's Goal
#12 Will Exterminate Six Billion People[5]
Move over, Mao, Stalin,
Hitler and Pol Pot, there is a new extermination king in town. It is called
Agenda 2030. Agenda 2030 conference in Paris is being guided by 17 goals which
contain targets that will alter humanity and change the planet forever. Of
particular concern is goal #12, as it is the conduit from which the globalist
depopulation agenda will be ushered in.
- Agenda 2030 Goal #12: Ensure sustainable
consumption and production patterns Following the
planned economic collapse, Agenda 2030 will enforce the most brutal
austerity programs ever conceived of, or ever enforced. Just as it
was in the Hunger Games
movie, all food, water and medicine will be rationed. Inhabitants
will be forced to take the Mark of the Beast, the dreaded but largely
unknown RFID chip. We are already witnessing the birth of a cashless
society. Soon, cash will be banned. Automation will bring promises of
unlimited food production. The public will be sold on the widespread use
of robots to achieve this goal. It will be a ruse. The goal is to replace
human workers with robots. The globalists will hoard the food in
order to help wipe out the ‘useless eaters’ through starvation. Then the
population will be forced into a devastating World War III.
Subsequently, Ted Turner and the other globalists will be able to
achieve their goals of reducing the world's population to a low
of 500,000,000.
Catholic
Population Principles[6]
In order to provide a
moral perspective, we affirm the following principles derived from the social
teaching of the Church.
1. Within the limits of
their own competence, government officials have rights and duties with regard
to the population problems of their own nations—for instance, in the matter of
social legislation as it affects families, of migration to cities, of information
relative to the conditions and needs of the nation. The government’s
positive role is to help bring about those conditions in which married couples,
without undue material, physical or psychological pressure, may exercise
responsible freedom in determining family size.
2. Decisions about
family size and the frequency of births belong to the parents and cannot be
left to public authorities. Such decisions depend on a rightly formed
conscience which respects the divine law and takes into consideration the
circumstances of the places and the time. In forming their consciences, parents
should take into account their responsibilities toward God, themselves, the
children they have already brought into the world and the community to which
they belong, "following the dictates of their conscience instructed about
the divine law authentically interpreted and strengthened by confidence in
God."
3. Public
authorities can provide information and recommend policies regarding population,
provided these are in conformity with moral law and respect the rightful
freedom of married couples.
4. Men and women
should be informed of scientific advances of methods of family planning
whose safety has been well proven and which are in accord with the moral law.
5. Abortion, directly willed and procured,
even if for therapeutic reasons, is to be absolutely excluded as a licit means
of regulating births.
Fitness
Friday
Flipping the Switches of Manliness[7]
The solution for the
modern male malaise lies at the heart of the idea behind the Art of Manliness
itself: to move forward by looking back.
The solution means moving
beyond the all-or-nothing proposition we sometimes feel we are stuck with. Men
feel like they cannot fully embrace the old ways nor move into the new ways,
and so they decide to do nothing at all. But it doesn’t have to be an all or
nothing proposition. You don’t have to become a sensitive ponytail guy OR a
Neanderthal.
Something that has helped
me lately is picturing those unique primordial male characteristics as power
switches that are either on or off. When these switches are
turned on, they activate our Wild Man. Talked about in books like Iron John and Wild at Heart, and here on AoM, the Wild Man is the spirited,
primal part of a man’s soul.
And the thing I’ve
discovered is that you can activate your Wild Man by doing things far short of
running down a herd of antelope for your dinner. You can take the parts of
masculinity that have been an integral part of manliness for thousands of years
and make sure some semblance of them are operating in your life. Not to the
extent that they were manifested in the lives of primitive man, but active
nonetheless. Sometimes we don’t move forward in our life because we think
the solution to our problem must be complicated and arduous to be effective.
But the switches of manliness can be turned on in surprisingly small and simple
ways.
What are the switches
of manliness?
I
know it’s debatable, and everyone is going to have their opinion as to what
they are, but I personally believe that there are five switches that every man
must turn on in order to power his spiritedness and flip on the motivation that
allows him to reach his full potential:
One
wonders if these are also be used as switches to turn a sinful man to a saint.
Over the next several
weeks, we’ll be exploring each of the these switches, both the sociology and
biology behind them, but also the practical ways to flip the switches in your
life so you can rein in your restlessness, activate your manliness, and cure the
modern male malaise you might be feeling.
Switches
of Manliness Series:
The Cure for the Modern Male
Malaise
Switch
#1: Physicality
Switch
#2: Challenge
Switch
#3: Legacy
Switch
#4: Provide
Switch
#5: Nature
·
Unite in the work of the Porters of St. Joseph by joining them
in fasting: True
Masculinity
"Faith
cannot save without virtue" (St. John Chrysostom).
Daily Devotions
·
Unite in the work of the Porters of St. Joseph by joining them
in fasting: End
Sex Trafficking, Slavery
·
Novena
to Our Lady of Mount Carmel-Day 5
·
Litany of the Most Precious
Blood of Jesus
·
Offering to
the sacred heart of Jesus
·
Practice fidelity to baptismal
vows
·
Rosary
[3] https://stbernardabbey.com/the-divine-office/
[5]https://thecommonsenseshow.com/conspiracy/agenda-2030s-goal-12-will-exterminate-six-billion-people
[6]http://www.usccb.org/issues-and-action/human-life-and-dignity/contraception/statement-on-population.cfm
[7]https://www.artofmanliness.com/character/behavior/the-cure-for-the-modern-male-malaise-the-5-switches-of-manliness/
[9] Schultz, Patricia. 1,000 Places to
See Before You Die
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