Episode 4

Building Schools and Breaking Boundaries in the Amazon - Phil Guastella

In this episode of Just a Number, we sit down with Phil Guastella, a man whose journey redefines what it means to give back and challenge the status quo.

At just 30 years old, Phil helped build a school and bring sustainable farming to communities deep in the Amazon. But that was only the beginning. Throughout his life, Phil has continuously pushed boundaries, finding new ways to make a lasting impact on the world around him.

Join us as we explore Phil’s remarkable story—from the Amazon to the present day—and discover what drives him to constantly seek out new ways to give back. How did a young man find himself building a school in the jungle? What lessons has he learned about service, leadership, and challenging the norms? And what can we all take away from his journey to apply in our own lives?

If you’re ready to be inspired, hit play now. And don’t forget to subscribe, like, and comment on the show—your support helps us bring more thought-provoking stories like this to your ears!

Transcript
Speaker:

welcome to another episode of just a number

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where we uncover stories

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that challenge perceptions of age

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and prove that anything is possible

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when we put our minds to it

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don't forget to subscribe

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leave a comment and join the conversation

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using whatever medium you're listening

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or watching this show on today

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we are thrilled to have a very special guest as always

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we've got Phil Guastella with us today

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a person whose journey is nothing short of inspiring

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if you can believe it in his early 20s

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he was already making an impact

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building a school

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and bringing sustainable farming to communities

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in the Amazon of all places

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so if you're wondering if making an impact is possible

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when you're at a young age

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this is definitely a story that you need to listen to

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he's continued to find innovative ways to contribute

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to others to push the envelope

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and the boundaries of what's possible

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so without further wait or ado this is just a number

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hello everybody

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I'm Daniel Steinfeld and this is Just A Number

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and I am thrilled today to be joined by Phil Guastella

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a gentleman that I had the pleasure of meeting

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several years back he is a fellow Realtor and we met

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uh at an open house

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you were just saying we uh

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sort of happened into one another early on

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in both of our careers yeah

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haha yeah

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actually I came to

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you guys put out a agent open house

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so I came and met your wife Katie and

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and I was in like in my beginnings of my career

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so I was really learning a lot back then

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I really was lost actually

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to be honest with you because he come out of school

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and it's nothing like what they tell you in school

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right oh

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that's it and that's a common

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it's common in this industry

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that's right so I

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I have been following you guys on social media and um

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you know and we've managed to build a kind of a

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you know relationship

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but at the same time you put this out there

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and I thought I'd respond to it and check it out

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yeah well

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I mean I'm

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I'm so happy you did and it's funny

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I mean with this

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this will go in a million different directions

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but you're right

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you're talking about coming out of school

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like we both

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we're talking school later in life for both of us

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where we sort of went and exactly

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it was back to school after school for both of us

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yeah I was actually 50 when I started

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no kidding so I'm 61 now

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wow so 11 years right

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on I'll go yeah

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so it was a big change change for my life

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that's for sure well

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that's it yeah

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like who who who's a rookie in their 50s right

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it doesn't happen that much

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but honestly it was it's a no

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I mean you've

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you've made a great career and

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and you've got what I was

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I mean when I read just the

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the very Coles Notes version of your story

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of what you've done prior to all this

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it blew me away and we had to have a chat here and I'm

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I'm really excited to learn

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and really get my hands dirty

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and all the cool stuff that you did

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I guess it would have been in your early 30s

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you were saying right

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like yeah

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in my early 30s was the time where I had the experience

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to go to the Brazil

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Northern Brazil in uh

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in in the Amazon so it was a small community actually

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it was about 20 families

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and it was like basically you're roughing it

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there's no electricity there's nothing

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you live out you live

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I lived for about a year and on a hammock

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you know

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no way enduring all enduring all them bugs and things

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you get used to it after a while

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but it was a

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it was a culture shock at the beginning for me

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but it didn't take very long for me to adapt

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that's one thing I Learned about human beings

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even at that age

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I didn't come to understand it at that age

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but looking back now I

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I really understood that we if you put in a situation

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you will adapt no

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and you will survive it absolutely okay

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so

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so take us back here because now everyone's listening

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they're all sitting there saying whoa whoa

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this guy lived in the Amazon for a year

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we just we just jumped right in there

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you're like like holy crap

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living on a hammock okay

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so this is like you're like the original survivor

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this is preferred before survivor was a thing

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you know and before Amazon was a thing

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like you're covering all the stuff that came later

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but yeah so

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so tell us a little bit about the community you helped

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and how you first got involved with them

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and what what came to

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to lead you to go to the Amazon for a year

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well what happened was at that point in my life

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I was basically I was just lost

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you know personally

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socially I was an intro I'm an introvert

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and I had I always felt different than others

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and but at the same time

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I would never voice those feelings or

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or those thoughts

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so I never nurture them

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but I always had this thing about helping people right

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so I remember going now I know we were in the Amazon

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but the prerequisite for that

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that got me to the Amazon at 18

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when I went to

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I used to see Children Christian Fund on TV

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and I used to sponsor $21 a month right

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so I did the sponsorship thing and we got two kids

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I got I sponsored two kids so then at one point

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that was started at 18 at twenty I said wait

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it'd be probably cool you know

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just to visit them see what's going on with the

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where's my money going

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what's happening down there if it's really helping them

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I wanted to see for myself yeah

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but when I was down there I got disillusioned right

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because I realized uh that most of the $21

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a lot of a percentage of that went to administration

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keeping the facilities running

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so it kind of turned me off

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I didn't see you know it was kind of yeah

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I know they have expenses

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but then when I saw the offices that they were

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they were building where they worked from

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and I see the people I said it didn't I just I

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I immediately I didn't feel good about it

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you were so supportive

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not the people you wanted to be supporting there

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it was it was going to yeah yeah

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yeah and anyways

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so but we stayed in contact and it was a

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it was a great feeling

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that I was helping them with the medic medication

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the books pencils and all that stuff but you know

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that was the start

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and I knew I had that in me because you know I

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all my friends were doing their own thing I

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I was doing something totally different

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and so I went and I and I experienced that

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and it was a good experience

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because sometimes you think everything is

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is what you see but in the background

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it's a different reality right

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but in a small way it does help

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in a way it does help

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and it create a relationship

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I had a long term relationship with these two girls

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they ended up

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by the time they were they were 4 and 5 at the time

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and then we we kept the correspondence over the years

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and then we lost ourselves

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and then around 22 we found

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when they were 20 21

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uh

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we found ourselves and we started communicating again

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so they're like in yeah

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have their own families now

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and they're you know it's

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it was it was

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it was a great starting point for me to investigate

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why do I have this need to do this

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right at that time

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that's that's amazing

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and also I mean

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if I'm if I'm doing the math

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if you're 18 20 years old

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this is predating really the internet

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even at that point of time

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yeah oh yeah

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so so when we're talking

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communicating and connecting with people

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on the other side of the world

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and in it was letters letters

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it was letters unbelievable wow

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so you were writing back and forth

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writing back and forth yeah

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and they were writing

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sending their pictures every time as the years went on

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to see that they were growing

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you know and just keeping in touch that way yeah

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do you so in Thailand

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I do you still have any of the letters

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do you still have the letters

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oh I have the box

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I have everything I still have it

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and I that back then we didn't have phones

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so everything is on um

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uh what are those uh

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photograph

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Kodak used to have slides

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oh slides yeah

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yeah so I got all every

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all my experience on slides and pictures

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that's great and you know what

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it's it's amazing too

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because to go down like first of all

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to take the initiative

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to do it in the first place at such a young age

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and then to follow up and say

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I wanna see what's actually happening

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I wanna see the impact I'm making

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and then the stick with itness of even seeing

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you know what

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some percentage of my money isn't even going

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where I intended to where I thought it was yeah

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but you know what

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but the good feeling and the impact it is having

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outweighs the

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the cynicism of I'm not doing this anymore because

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you know ah

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it's it's yeah

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it's paying for rip off yeah

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so that that's

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that's amazing and

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and it LED to what looks like it's become

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you know

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a lifetime of contributing and having that feeling

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the itch to help exactly

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exactly and it

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and it it comes from inside right

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it's not it's

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it's not for every it's not for everyone and

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and I Learned that if something is pestering my

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my inner soul or my mind

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you have to investigate what that is right

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because you don't wanna

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you don't wanna miss opportunities right

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because that's right we

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we can tend to miss a lot of opportunities

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or we just don't see him well

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that's it I

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I I think a

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a big theme of really this whole podcast

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but definitely this this episode is

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you know you only live once right

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you've got

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you've got one life to do what you can with it

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and if there's opportunity or there's curiosity

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you know you either chase it or you

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or you live your life wondering and

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and regretting and maybe regretting right

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so maybe yeah

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so that's that's amazing

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so you went you had that experience in Thailand

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and then was there was there just a little bit of a uh

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you know you

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you had scratched the itch

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and then it kind of resurfaced a few years later

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is that what happened yeah

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then then there was a point in my

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after around between I think around 22

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23 23 to for

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for for about five years

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I kind of got lost hmm

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I got lost with direction

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you know I'm uh

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didn't know what to do I always worked

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I had a a

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job but I just didn't know wasn't a happy camper

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I just I felt really good over there

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but when I came back home

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the reality was is is totally different right

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so I I ended up

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having this

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a friend of mine who is a priest who now resides in

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in Italy actually

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he's coming in today to Toronto tonight

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oh wow and he gave me this experience

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he told me I was sharing to him these these feelings

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so he gave me the opportunity and he says

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wouldn't you think you'd want to go to Brazil

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and I said sure why not

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so I went with a friend of mine I go first of all

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I went with a friend with

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under another organization the first time

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but that didn't work out because we wanted

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me and my friend at that time

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we wanted the experience of help really

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truly helping them and living their life

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lives on their terms

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we didn't want any special treatment right

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and the community

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the the project that was happening at that time

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it was

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it was the same same reality I got from Thailand

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I got there so nothing changed

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lots of money going into this organization

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and just being eaten up by the locals

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and those few appointed people

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and it was like disheartening yeah

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so we were communicating

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this back and forth to the priest

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that sent us there anyways

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to end a long it's a long story

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but the priest confronted them

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and then after they had the confrontation

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we saw that there is no experience here

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there is not the things that they offered us

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and then it was a lot of political stuff going around

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and anyways they made us

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us because we were complaining and asking

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me and my friend John they made they like crucified us

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they said that we weren't waking up in the

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during the day we're sleeping and partying

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we weren't

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we weren't helping what we were supposed to do

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they

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we didn't want to contribute or participate anyway

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and and this is while you're volunteering

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like you're already volunteering there

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I'm supposed I'm supposed to volunteer my expense right

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I paid my way

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and only because they had some program set up

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but everything lock uh uh

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the lumber factory was closed

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the ceramic school was closed

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they had all these trades

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learning the community so that they can learn a trade

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they were so they can we can teach them you know

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they had the the facilitators there

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but everything was closed

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nothing was happening money was coming in yeah

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but nothing was being offered

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so that was a here we go again

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I said right and it was disappointing

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so they basically kicked us out

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because they had to kick us out

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because they were going on the premise that

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you know we were troublemakers

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so they kicked us out

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and I made friends with a family there

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they picked us up

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and we stayed in their house for another three months

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so we stayed there first time

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four months

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and this is where the everything opened up for me

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hmm cause I started meeting people

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I started meeting people in the social aspect of it

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who are

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who are trying to educate the people are in Amazon

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not to sell their land right

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and and at that time

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there was a Japanese Italians

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Americans you name it

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they were just buying off all this land

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you know and because of the lack of education

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the Brazilians have a majority of them

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and they didn't understand that being

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they were poor with this land

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if you got rid of it they were

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they were on the street they have nowhere to go then

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and that's what's happening

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was happening back then

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that's why you see so many people on the street

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that had they had some equity

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uh so called equity for that market

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but then

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they would be convinced to sell it to these companies

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who promised them employment

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which never happened

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so I started seeing that and I start

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I joined them and I said listen

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I have to come back and really spend more time

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so I spent another four months and just to feel it out

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how it was going what is the issue

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what's the problem and that's how I started with them

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we started a cooperative of farmers

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20 farmers it was called cooperativa

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it got a pay a suit and we started

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I started fundraising in Canada

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going back and forth the first couple years

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and I remember the first time I would

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I collected five grand the second time eight grand

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and that came a long way because with that money

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I ended up building one

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with the five grand of school we ended up building

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and I be the administrator

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like I would never do a project in Brazil

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and just give them the money and just leave

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I had to be there you would learn

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you would learn yeah

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you have to be there it was

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I mean to become the boots on the ground when you know

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you you weren't I think scarred is the wrong word

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but you had Learned your lesson

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seeing the money being shipped to somebody else

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to administer it on their behalf

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and for you to take that hat and put it on

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you weren't gonna let that happen right

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like I yeah I wasn't gonna happen yeah

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that's a that's what that's amazing

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so you built a school right away

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or at least the money went towards a school right away

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the yeah we I bet paid for the materials

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we built the school we had all the community helping

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which is beautiful

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and it's like the nothing replaces that

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it's like

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there's no money that can give you

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what that feels like

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when everybody's helping each other right

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and so we built it and it was great

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so they would take

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this was actually for mothers who had infants

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that they could drop them off at this school

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and because there was a few nuns

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that would actually help out

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they would kind of

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it was almost like a free our daycare now yeah

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basically it was a daycare

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and without even knowing that it was a daycare

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we were doing and so we did that and it was fine

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I left we still had things to work on

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we were constantly educating them

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it was a constant education

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every meetings we would have two

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two to three times a week while I was there

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because a lot of pressure was done to people

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from the outside

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because people wanted to buy their land right

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and it's so corrupt over there uh

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even the government we know and it was hard uh

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you know it was hard

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it was hard on them cause they

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they had no nobody

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no voice for them nobody like speaking on their behalf

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except for these few people

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anyways so I went back home and I said

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well you know

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that worked out okay I was happy right

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but I knew I have to be there to do this so I collected

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did a fundraising

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just family and friends and I got 8,000 this time

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and that's when I went to the

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we start the cooperative

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so we use the money first of all

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to plant 2,000 fruit trees

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cause they were only planting and learning

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what their parents taught them from generations before

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just staple items they were doing

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they weren't progressing right right

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so we got the fruit trees happening and then a system

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a irrigation system we bought uh

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total system for two hectares of land

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we use the river

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we have the water there pump and and would uh

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you know all year round

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they would have water

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because there's certain times of the year it lacks

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so we did that and we got it going and it was great

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but then but then I added this life experience

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changing experience cause then I had to decide

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what am I gonna do with my life

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I like this I love it yeah

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but back then in my 30s you know

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I had this thing when people telling me

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when are you gonna move on and do something for you

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right these pressures that that's

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that's ironic to me I mean

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maybe it is I even saw your face there

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isn't it I don't wanna cut you off

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but like that that's ironic that people are saying okay

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when are you gonna do something for you

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and from everything you've told me

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there couldn't have been more of a process

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you'd already undertaken that was for you

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more than anything else could have been

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is that is that accurate like that

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that's accurate but I I

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I I was on that wagon

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too

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I started believing that what they were saying that

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I mean yeah

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I started doubting hmm myself right

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and that's just created on other issues for me

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as I was growing up right

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but I knew one thing I didn't know

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know that if I'm gonna do this work

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it's a it's a lifetime commitment right

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and the first thing that popped in my head was

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life of a priest right

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yeah and I go

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that's what I related it to

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being a role

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brought up in a Roman Catholic environment

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and priests do this stuff

519

:

I know priests that do this stuff

520

:

is that like I used to is that my calling

521

:

I said no I said I don't think so

522

:

I I don't think I can sacrifice that much right

523

:

so I decided but I knew that I had to be

524

:

or somebody had to be administering these projects

525

:

not them right

526

:

and unfortunately

527

:

it it went well and as the time went on

528

:

and I decided that I had to move on with my life

529

:

slowly but surely that project started to deteriorate

530

:

right to the point where

531

:

people locals started taking advantage

532

:

so if you saw like for example

533

:

the school

534

:

the school was became abandoned while I was there

535

:

everything was working fine

536

:

going back and forth was fine

537

:

and

538

:

and then somebody just took ownership of the school

539

:

you know it's like

540

:

wow just planted their flag and that was it yeah

541

:

they just took that and that was it and that was okay

542

:

that's how it goes over there right

543

:

hmm so

544

:

but what the experience

545

:

I still was happy for what I done

546

:

but at the same time it made me realize that I

547

:

I think a lot of Westerners

548

:

or people from North America or Europe

549

:

that go there and see these people

550

:

uh I think we're a little bit arrogant

551

:

in the sense that

552

:

we think that our way of doing things is

553

:

is good we have to teach them how to do it

554

:

because basically they were

555

:

they were so they were like

556

:

when I would talk to my parents about my experiences uh

557

:

they said that

558

:

they related to it after the Second World War

559

:

the times of the Second World War so they were like

560

:

these people would go like

561

:

would steal nails from the city park

562

:

just because they needed nails

563

:

so they would tore up a bench just for the nails

564

:

I I was living in the community

565

:

I was living amongst leprosy

566

:

still leprosy was going on with these families

567

:

so it was like

568

:

I met through the social workers in the area

569

:

and he brought me to a hospital

570

:

he brought me to a hospital

571

:

a room full of medication expired

572

:

never got people never got to see this medication

573

:

cause it's so corrupt so

574

:

going back to why

575

:

I think most people think we can put our

576

:

our culture into them and let them understand the

577

:

like that our values what our values are

578

:

and this is the way you should do things

579

:

is not necessarily helping them right

580

:

I I

581

:

I realized at that moment

582

:

uh that my reaction to the environment was

583

:

it was not easy for me to

584

:

to absorb

585

:

because I found myself in moments by myself crying how

586

:

just what I seen

587

:

and then I realized that my tears were not

588

:

thought they were because I felt sorry for them

589

:

there's probably some truth to that

590

:

but it it really showed me how broken I was hmm

591

:

well I mean

592

:

right

593

:

in a lot of ways that's

594

:

it's a very strange I think

595

:

profit benefit you got from the experience

596

:

as much as that might have been a painful experience

597

:

these are the sorts of learnings

598

:

and life changing things that help shape you

599

:

and probably have LED to experiences and reactions

600

:

and risks you've taken since then

601

:

um yeah

602

:

right it's a that's

603

:

it's deep stuff right

604

:

you go there because

605

:

and for all the right reasons and that never left you

606

:

it doesn't sound like you know

607

:

to help yeah

608

:

and to make an impact and you did

609

:

you absolutely did but

610

:

you know to say it was transactional

611

:

I think is not true like it wasn't even

612

:

even if it's not there anymore now

613

:

right even if the school is shut down yeah

614

:

even if the fruit trees aren't growing

615

:

and I'm sure a lot of them are but I mean

616

:

even if some of it is is gone

617

:

you know you were able to take from it

618

:

something that sticks with you

619

:

and I think the people you impacted there

620

:

you know the ones that aren't corrupt

621

:

you know yeah

622

:

you know well

623

:

we still keep in touch

624

:

we still keep in touch now they're older

625

:

I I through Facebook I talk to them yeah

626

:

well there you go

627

:

the internet showed up somewhere in the middle there

628

:

it showed up allegedly

629

:

haha yeah

630

:

it's perfect so yeah

631

:

so it was a I can draw I can go on forever

632

:

but another experience I had was looking back now

633

:

it was when I used to meet other people trying

634

:

quote unquote helping them from other governments

635

:

so the Germans I met some Germans I met some

636

:

Italians some French I met some Norwegians

637

:

Japanese and at different parts of the year

638

:

because they would the government would pay for them

639

:

right and I would see them amongst the

640

:

these families I was with

641

:

so what would happen was I would get to know them

642

:

but these people lived in a hotel two hours away

643

:

they were paid to be there

644

:

I wasn't I paid out of my own money and and so

645

:

but they're trying to buy their land

646

:

that's why they're there that's why they're there

647

:

so we would have meetings right

648

:

they would have meetings with them

649

:

and they would do their job

650

:

proposal this is what you we're gonna create for you

651

:

these are the jobs that are gonna be available by my

652

:

which is all it's not true right

653

:

it's all a manipulation to take the land

654

:

and so here we are at one day

655

:

I'm working with them and we were on the fields

656

:

Manjioka fields

657

:

just taking gather getting rid of all the weeds right

658

:

and it's hot and I this lady comes

659

:

she was probably a little bit older than me

660

:

at the time and she wanted to ask me a question

661

:

she goes like

662

:

I see you have a relationship with these guys

663

:

and how do you do it

664

:

like like we're we're finding it very difficult

665

:

they like they don't even want to see us right

666

:

how did how did you do what you're what you're doing

667

:

I go well first of all I paid my own way

668

:

secondly I'm living with them and I'm working

669

:

I'm helping them produce what they produce

670

:

which was manioc and corn for the

671

:

for the feed for the chickens and

672

:

and rice

673

:

that's all we would do and where they came in

674

:

they weren't working with them

675

:

they were just trying to manipulate them

676

:

and they didn't respect them right

677

:

and that was the difference

678

:

it's a huge difference huge difference

679

:

and then that's when I knew that was she

680

:

when I experienced that with her

681

:

that's when I reinforced what I was doing was right

682

:

it made me feel feel really good about myself

683

:

so so on that note

684

:

like over the course of your time there

685

:

was there a lot of self doubt

686

:

like why am I here

687

:

is this the right thing

688

:

like were you

689

:

were you having moments of

690

:

you know I know why I came here

691

:

but now that I am here what the hell am I doing haha

692

:

like did that happen

693

:

yeah yeah

694

:

there were moments there were moments when uh

695

:

when uh

696

:

some there were moments I gotta be honest with

697

:

I miss the family uh huh

698

:

and in those moments you know

699

:

those thoughts would come in and those

700

:

what those thoughts were were

701

:

they were supportive right

702

:

but I didn't feel that I was like

703

:

really confident in myself

704

:

with the purpose of why I was there

705

:

I found out after why I was there

706

:

and it was really

707

:

really for an eye opener for me

708

:

for the type of character I am

709

:

uh that I am an insensitive person

710

:

I'm really open with people

711

:

and when you open with people

712

:

you're a target you can

713

:

when you're really authentic

714

:

you know yep

715

:

and I Learned my weaknesses

716

:

and my strength while I was there and

717

:

and I knew one thing that whatever life I want to lead

718

:

it's it's got to be simple

719

:

it's got to be simplified and not get caught up in the

720

:

the materialistic things uh huh

721

:

you know and all the noise

722

:

all that pressure the noise

723

:

yeah you know

724

:

the rushing

725

:

what you can't avoid those things being in Toronto

726

:

but that that pressure

727

:

you know because when I came back

728

:

I was so laid back now I'm not

729

:

now I'm I'm nuts

730

:

I'm so stressed

731

:

well I

732

:

I I mean in

733

:

in in both instances

734

:

you talked about first Thailand

735

:

and then with the Amazon I mean

736

:

you prefaced it by saying you felt lost

737

:

you know and

738

:

and you didn't have the direction

739

:

and the first time through

740

:

I mean it gave you some immediate

741

:

you know direction and

742

:

and understanding of what felt good

743

:

and then again you know

744

:

after sort of losing yourself a bit again

745

:

this rejuvenated and you know

746

:

invigorated you and also

747

:

like you're saying

748

:

you Learned so much about what you needed

749

:

and what you wanted so

750

:

in some ways did that year in the Amazon

751

:

set the stage for the rest of your life

752

:

for understanding and being a little less lost

753

:

when you came out of that

754

:

or did you

755

:

did you come out of the

756

:

sorry go ahead

757

:

no yeah

758

:

it did set the stage

759

:

uh

760

:

but not till now that's why I took

761

:

I threw myself in because

762

:

uh for up to covid

763

:

uh

764

:

right after Covid when the lockdown happened

765

:

I regressed a lot mentally

766

:

so I was in the condo living

767

:

and for those 17 months whatever it was

768

:

like I regressed like I couldn't

769

:

I couldn't do function

770

:

at all

771

:

so these last two years I've been building myself up

772

:

because I wasn't even practicing real estate

773

:

I couldn't do any of my real estate now business

774

:

I knew that I had to really

775

:

still struggling with the main core

776

:

even though I Learned these things over there

777

:

I still wasn't okay with with me

778

:

and then I realized that I look what I've done

779

:

that's why I'm here no kidding

780

:

it's selfish it's selfish

781

:

but I thought this would help me

782

:

you know when we talk about opportunities

783

:

I saw an opportunity absolutely

784

:

I have something to offer right

785

:

and I'm just connecting back with that right now

786

:

totally well

787

:

and so since I've been getting back

788

:

it's helping me and you know

789

:

it move forward

790

:

it's funny to me that you look at it as selfish at all

791

:

because the very well

792

:

that's how I feel and and and I mean

793

:

let me be the one to tell you that this is

794

:

I mean not only

795

:

notwithstanding that everything you were talking about

796

:

was as selfless as it comes

797

:

even sharing your story is

798

:

you know if this helps

799

:

or inspires one person who's listening to this

800

:

to either break out of their shell

801

:

or to realize that you know

802

:

what they're thinking or the

803

:

the rut that they're in is not

804

:

you know isolated to just their story right

805

:

and it motivates them to get out and do something

806

:

and try something then hey

807

:

you know what could be less selfish than

808

:

than getting that message out there

809

:

and I mean uh

810

:

yeah it

811

:

it's it's inspiring

812

:

just to hear the story makes me wanna go and

813

:

and if I didn't have four kids I

814

:

I I

815

:

I I should set up a hammock maybe in my backyard and

816

:

and maybe plant some trees back there

817

:

I think that's as far as I could go

818

:

but but yeah

819

:

I mean it's

820

:

it's a it's just unreal

821

:

you know that

822

:

you know you did all that and that

823

:

you know I

824

:

I don't think that mentality leaves you

825

:

I mean whether or not there were bumps along the way

826

:

it's not that

827

:

you need to go and visit a third world country

828

:

every year to keep the spark going inside of you

829

:

but I think it's a part of who you are

830

:

and it's it's really interesting to me

831

:

that the way that you could

832

:

kind of restart your engine

833

:

those two times was doing something selfless

834

:

and helping others and empowering other people

835

:

who might have been pretty lost themselves at the time

836

:

right like you showed up in a place

837

:

maybe they didn't know they were lost

838

:

because they were being so taken advantage of

839

:

but I mean there's just so much impact that was made

840

:

and it doesn't really I shouldn't say it doesn't matter

841

:

that's not fair

842

:

but it's not as important how sustained the impact was

843

:

given that the impact you

844

:

made

845

:

can't be taken away for the time that you were there

846

:

and you're still maintaining contact with these people

847

:

right so you know that they're still

848

:

they're still kicking I don't know

849

:

like are there any like these are people

850

:

were they your age when you were there

851

:

like were they people around the same age as you

852

:

no they were

853

:

they were four 5 years old at the time

854

:

oh like the ones in Thailand were the children

855

:

yeah no

856

:

they even oh

857

:

and in Brazil Brazil

858

:

oh wow

859

:

and the eldest around probably twelve now

860

:

they're in their their like 30s and 40s

861

:

that's amazing and some are in their late twenties

862

:

uh because which were the

863

:

the family I stayed in they had like 12 children

864

:

and they were all young at the time

865

:

and there was two maybe 12 year old and 13 year old

866

:

now they're a little bit older

867

:

but uh yeah

868

:

they're they're

869

:

they were we still keep in touch

870

:

we see we talk on Facebook and Messenger

871

:

and I'm planning to go

872

:

I wanted to go last year this summer

873

:

but I change brokerages and things like that

874

:

but

875

:

I'll be in a better position next year

876

:

to go and visit them wow

877

:

so have you seen them since they were kids

878

:

like no

879

:

you haven't been well

880

:

I see all them on Facebook video

881

:

Facebook Messenger like or

882

:

or zoom we've connected a couple times and yeah

883

:

they're all grown up it's like

884

:

it's incredible oh see

885

:

I see I should have planned ahead and made this like

886

:

one of those surprise

887

:

guess who we've got behind door number one

888

:

but haha but I didn't know from Brazil

889

:

oh from Brazil

890

:

oh man so I

891

:

I guess why

892

:

yeah here they are

893

:

four of the kids um

894

:

so is it everybody speaks Portuguese there

895

:

is that is that what

896

:

yes and so is that a

897

:

is that a language you spoke before you went there

898

:

no I had to

899

:

I Learned it and the funny thing about Portuguese uh

900

:

there's a difference with the Brazilian Portuguese

901

:

and Portuguese from Portugal

902

:

uh the Brazilian Portuguese

903

:

there were a lot because I'm Italian and I know my

904

:

I only know I know more my dialect from the Sicily

905

:

from southern Sicily uh

906

:

that a lot of our words

907

:

it's part of the language

908

:

the Latin language but similar where

909

:

where the where communication comes from

910

:

and all our dialogue comes from

911

:

they were similar so

912

:

I would pick off these words and understand

913

:

and use them right

914

:

and then slowly

915

:

it was easier to learn Portuguese than French

916

:

that's for sure yeah

917

:

well yeah

918

:

those are very different yeah

919

:

yeah wow

920

:

so so I got to learn it I

921

:

I'm I'm

922

:

I understand more than I can speak it

923

:

because I don't practice it as much but

924

:

but it it'll come

925

:

it if I go there

926

:

it'll come back yeah

927

:

come back so in

928

:

in terms I mean

929

:

that's one example of a

930

:

of an actual tangible education you got from being

931

:

there was a whole language

932

:

I mean did you

933

:

did you know already some of the things like

934

:

irrigation and plant like

935

:

the actual skilled

936

:

trade type stuff that you were doing to help there

937

:

or did you also kind of learn as you yeah

938

:

because yeah I

939

:

well when I was growing up I I

940

:

I I went to a Humber college cause I only

941

:

I only went I just got my grade 12

942

:

I wasn't a guy who loves school

943

:

and I just barely got through yeah

944

:

but then I

945

:

haha

946

:

that's a good way of looking at it

947

:

I didn't like it but I decided

948

:

you know what if I don't go

949

:

I might as well build it

950

:

yeah so

951

:

so I I ended up now I lost my thumb

952

:

you make me laugh here sorry

953

:

so the skills that you that you already knew out of

954

:

out of humble oh yeah

955

:

I went to school and I took over the culture course

956

:

I got my horticultural science

957

:

a night school so

958

:

I was going to night school

959

:

and getting my horticultural science

960

:

got that out of the way then I decided landscape design

961

:

cause I was in there already and I like

962

:

I'm a creative person so I like creating and I did that

963

:

but I never got my my diploma in landscape design

964

:

design because I had a situation with my my teacher who

965

:

who was it was a stickler on timing

966

:

like I was like 10 seconds late to hand in a report

967

:

and he wouldn't accept it

968

:

it was my last my last report too

969

:

which was part of my Mark and me at that time

970

:

I just I was a hothead back then

971

:

so you can imagine what happened

972

:

oh yeah and I got

973

:

I left

974

:

I left with and I got so upset at myself because I I

975

:

I couldn't handle it that that situation

976

:

even my sister would say well

977

:

go talk to the

978

:

the dean or whoever's in charge of Humber College

979

:

and cause that's not fair

980

:

that's not you're gonna

981

:

not gonna get your credit because you didn't have

982

:

you were late on a report that's

983

:

you know anyways

984

:

I didn't and I just took it

985

:

but I regret not following up

986

:

that's a mistake I made

987

:

are you still one credit short then now

988

:

like if you were to go and yeah

989

:

I'm still yeah the last yeah

990

:

I'm I I I never went back

991

:

I I just got so demoralized right

992

:

and um I just never went back and that's you know

993

:

you know what I mean

994

:

talk about using your powers for good though

995

:

you might have been a hothead

996

:

but at least you know

997

:

if anybody from Humber College is listening now like

998

:

look look what he did with what he Learned

999

:

he even despite not getting the credit

:

00:41:09,866 --> 00:41:10,466

he took it

:

00:41:10,466 --> 00:41:13,000

and he helped an entire community in the Amazon

:

00:41:13,000 --> 00:41:16,066

with this knowledge so that's gotta be worth something

:

00:41:16,066 --> 00:41:18,533

co op marks or something like take those hours

:

00:41:18,933 --> 00:41:20,833

I think we should send them this video

:

00:41:20,833 --> 00:41:21,833

yeah I think so

:

00:41:21,833 --> 00:41:24,033

I think maybe maybe there's hope for you still

:

00:41:24,033 --> 00:41:25,533

maybe that credit is waiting in the wing

:

00:41:25,533 --> 00:41:26,666

do you still have the paper

:

00:41:26,666 --> 00:41:28,266

maybe they'll take it a bit later like

:

00:41:28,266 --> 00:41:31,133

you know like 30 years late haha

:

00:41:31,133 --> 00:41:32,100

no big deal

:

00:41:32,733 --> 00:41:33,533

oh man

:

00:41:34,200 --> 00:41:35,233

but okay so yeah

:

00:41:35,233 --> 00:41:36,633

that's how I used it

:

00:41:36,633 --> 00:41:40,600

I used the the knowledge and how to help them

:

00:41:40,600 --> 00:41:44,233

and it was pretty pretty straightforward for me

:

00:41:44,366 --> 00:41:45,600

that's I mean

:

00:41:45,600 --> 00:41:46,866

it's interesting too I mean

:

00:41:46,866 --> 00:41:49,200

the premise of this podcast is all about

:

00:41:49,200 --> 00:41:50,333

you know things we do

:

00:41:50,333 --> 00:41:51,766

maybe at times in our lives

:

00:41:51,766 --> 00:41:53,266

that people wouldn't consider like

:

00:41:53,266 --> 00:41:54,200

the norm right

:

00:41:54,200 --> 00:41:55,733

like the whole just a number

:

00:41:55,933 --> 00:41:58,566

you know you did a lot of these things younger in life

:

00:41:58,566 --> 00:42:00,866

we talked about how you know

:

00:42:00,866 --> 00:42:02,533

just in the last 10 years

:

00:42:02,533 --> 00:42:04,566

you've pursued a new career path

:

00:42:04,566 --> 00:42:07,166

you've taken the courses and now you're

:

00:42:07,166 --> 00:42:10,133

you know a practicing and and successful realtor

:

00:42:10,433 --> 00:42:10,966

you know

:

00:42:10,966 --> 00:42:14,400

and the far be it for me to say in any way you're old

:

00:42:14,400 --> 00:42:15,233

you know you've got

:

00:42:15,233 --> 00:42:16,766

you know plenty of career

:

00:42:16,766 --> 00:42:18,466

but like this is the sort of thing also

:

00:42:18,466 --> 00:42:21,866

that you've kind of defied the odds on both sides

:

00:42:21,866 --> 00:42:23,033

by doing a lot of things

:

00:42:23,033 --> 00:42:24,200

people might not do

:

00:42:24,200 --> 00:42:26,266

until they've established themselves more

:

00:42:26,266 --> 00:42:28,233

so this is what you did early on

:

00:42:28,233 --> 00:42:29,966

and now a whole career change

:

00:42:29,966 --> 00:42:31,066

and let me just throw in there

:

00:42:31,066 --> 00:42:34,033

I saw the video of your dad playing the saxophone

:

00:42:34,400 --> 00:42:35,566

in that March oh yeah

:

00:42:35,566 --> 00:42:37,866

you said like talk about cool

:

00:42:37,866 --> 00:42:39,233

like which is even more like

:

00:42:39,233 --> 00:42:41,166

you want to talk about just a number

:

00:42:41,166 --> 00:42:43,600

like how old is he like 89

:

00:42:43,600 --> 00:42:45,366

89 years old he's going 90

:

00:42:45,466 --> 00:42:48,266

90 in February and he's in a marching band

:

00:42:48,266 --> 00:42:49,666

like he's playing what was that

:

00:42:49,666 --> 00:42:51,633

a tenor sax that wasn't even a small sax

:

00:42:51,633 --> 00:42:53,533

tenor sax holy jeez

:

00:42:53,833 --> 00:42:56,433

and he sounded good he sounded good

:

00:42:56,800 --> 00:42:58,166

he's right in yeah

:

00:42:58,166 --> 00:43:00,400

he used to play professionally in Australia

:

00:43:00,400 --> 00:43:01,766

because that's where we're from

:

00:43:01,766 --> 00:43:03,800

Australia where I was born there

:

00:43:03,800 --> 00:43:07,033

me and my sister so he used to have a full time gig

:

00:43:07,166 --> 00:43:09,466

and he full time gig at nights and play

:

00:43:09,466 --> 00:43:12,533

and he was a lathe lathe operator for GM

:

00:43:12,533 --> 00:43:14,266

General Motors at the time

:

00:43:14,433 --> 00:43:17,066

so he's that's where he got all his

:

00:43:18,333 --> 00:43:20,466

musical experience you know

:

00:43:20,466 --> 00:43:23,433

playing big bands oh wow

:

00:43:23,466 --> 00:43:26,066

that back then and that naturally I fell

:

00:43:26,200 --> 00:43:28,166

followed his steps and when I was young

:

00:43:28,166 --> 00:43:30,166

I got into music myself with

:

00:43:30,166 --> 00:43:31,133

you're a drummer right

:

00:43:31,133 --> 00:43:32,866

like you like you yeah yeah

:

00:43:33,266 --> 00:43:34,500

yeah and uh

:

00:43:34,633 --> 00:43:37,266

so and my sister's a singer

:

00:43:37,266 --> 00:43:40,033

and my brother started playing piano when he was young

:

00:43:40,033 --> 00:43:41,333

but then he gave it up

:

00:43:41,533 --> 00:43:45,200

but we all have the music thing in bug in us

:

00:43:45,200 --> 00:43:48,166

so has there been a little jam session or two

:

00:43:48,166 --> 00:43:49,800

in the family where you've all played together

:

00:43:49,800 --> 00:43:50,666

um we

:

00:43:50,666 --> 00:43:53,066

we way back way back

:

00:43:53,066 --> 00:43:55,033

we used to jam wait

:

00:43:55,033 --> 00:43:55,966

when we were younger

:

00:43:55,966 --> 00:43:57,866

because me and my sister used to be in a band

:

00:43:57,866 --> 00:44:01,666

we used to tour a lot and like doing hotels yeah

:

00:44:01,733 --> 00:44:03,300

and we used to be

:

00:44:03,366 --> 00:44:06,566

and we got went from hotels like lounge music

:

00:44:06,566 --> 00:44:09,366

then next thing you know we're doing Pat Benatar

:

00:44:10,566 --> 00:44:11,366

haha

:

00:44:11,766 --> 00:44:12,700

that's amazing or

:

00:44:14,166 --> 00:44:17,933

you know or we're doing the heart heart music

:

00:44:17,933 --> 00:44:19,633

you know the old heart great

:

00:44:20,066 --> 00:44:23,033

and we used to do the gas works downtown

:

00:44:23,033 --> 00:44:24,500

Larry's Hideaway

:

00:44:25,366 --> 00:44:28,666

we used to go all over Canada and play these bars

:

00:44:28,666 --> 00:44:30,766

when music was appreciated

:

00:44:30,766 --> 00:44:32,300

right now then the

:

00:44:32,500 --> 00:44:33,833

you know what happened with the DJs

:

00:44:33,833 --> 00:44:36,166

it's today yeah

:

00:44:36,666 --> 00:44:38,900

the DJs took over yeah

:

00:44:39,400 --> 00:44:41,133

I hear you I hear you

:

00:44:41,133 --> 00:44:42,966

so that that's amazing though

:

00:44:42,966 --> 00:44:45,266

like that's these are the sorts of things that it it's

:

00:44:45,266 --> 00:44:47,766

it's amazing to me just you know

:

00:44:47,800 --> 00:44:50,833

if you just chip away like the the layers to everybody

:

00:44:50,833 --> 00:44:52,366

you know it's like peeling back an onion

:

00:44:52,366 --> 00:44:53,966

like all these things and

:

00:44:53,966 --> 00:44:56,533

and stories like that's that's amazing stuff

:

00:44:56,533 --> 00:44:58,200

so you toured all the Canada as a journey yeah

:

00:44:58,200 --> 00:44:59,200

no big deal you know

:

00:44:59,200 --> 00:45:01,933

built a school in Brazil no big deal whatever

:

00:45:01,933 --> 00:45:04,433

you know touring Canada yeah

:

00:45:04,433 --> 00:45:06,033

whatever you know

:

00:45:06,066 --> 00:45:09,066

this is like that's all I was I didn't I wasn't very

:

00:45:09,466 --> 00:45:11,933

I wasn't it wasn't a good time for me back then

:

00:45:12,333 --> 00:45:14,866

even though I was doing them doing those things

:

00:45:14,866 --> 00:45:15,866

the music step oh

:

00:45:15,866 --> 00:45:16,466

well you mean yeah

:

00:45:16,466 --> 00:45:18,800

I guess no it was a good time in the music

:

00:45:18,800 --> 00:45:20,866

but I mean personally yeah

:

00:45:20,866 --> 00:45:22,833

I wasn't I wasn't okay with me

:

00:45:22,833 --> 00:45:24,200

even though I'm doing this

:

00:45:24,200 --> 00:45:25,633

I wasn't okay

:

00:45:25,633 --> 00:45:28,766

I wasn't when people would tell me on and commend me

:

00:45:28,766 --> 00:45:30,800

it just didn't something was wrong

:

00:45:30,800 --> 00:45:32,000

that's what I was searching for

:

00:45:32,000 --> 00:45:33,333

I didn't know what it was

:

00:45:33,366 --> 00:45:35,633

and I just discovered it recently

:

00:45:35,800 --> 00:45:36,800

yeah well

:

00:45:36,800 --> 00:45:37,600

it's you know

:

00:45:37,600 --> 00:45:38,566

it's you know what

:

00:45:38,566 --> 00:45:41,633

it's no small feet to keep searching for it

:

00:45:41,633 --> 00:45:44,066

and to not give up on trying to figure it out right

:

00:45:44,066 --> 00:45:45,866

cause I think a lot of people

:

00:45:45,866 --> 00:45:48,200

they're lost and they stay lost and that's it

:

00:45:48,200 --> 00:45:50,033

and I think on multiple occasions

:

00:45:50,033 --> 00:45:51,566

you know early on

:

00:45:51,566 --> 00:45:51,833

you know

:

00:45:51,833 --> 00:45:54,200

you had those experiences that helped address it

:

00:45:54,200 --> 00:45:56,166

and then even if you were still sort of

:

00:45:56,433 --> 00:45:57,833

searching for the answer

:

00:45:57,833 --> 00:45:59,066

it's great to know and you know what

:

00:45:59,066 --> 00:46:01,166

there's more answers to come for all of us right

:

00:46:01,166 --> 00:46:02,833

like you're in a good place now

:

00:46:02,833 --> 00:46:03,633

which is amazing

:

00:46:03,633 --> 00:46:07,866

but so nowhere nowhere to go but up up more right

:

00:46:07,866 --> 00:46:11,766

so yeah that's that's what I'm hoping for yeah

:

00:46:11,766 --> 00:46:12,833

so I mean

:

00:46:12,833 --> 00:46:15,433

if there's people that are listening to this now

:

00:46:15,433 --> 00:46:17,600

who maybe are are in a similar spot

:

00:46:17,600 --> 00:46:19,000

right whether whether you know

:

00:46:19,000 --> 00:46:20,766

whether it's earlier on in their career

:

00:46:20,766 --> 00:46:22,000

or later on in their career

:

00:46:22,000 --> 00:46:23,333

or somewhere in the middle

:

00:46:23,466 --> 00:46:25,066

what sort of advice would you give them

:

00:46:25,066 --> 00:46:27,066

if they're feeling a little bit lost

:

00:46:27,066 --> 00:46:29,000

or there's things they think they might wanna do

:

00:46:29,000 --> 00:46:31,666

but they just don't believe it's for them

:

00:46:31,666 --> 00:46:33,966

or it's not the way that the script is written

:

00:46:33,966 --> 00:46:35,666

for them yeah

:

00:46:35,666 --> 00:46:38,933

I would say if if you're still feeling

:

00:46:38,933 --> 00:46:41,066

if those feelings don't go away

:

00:46:41,566 --> 00:46:43,666

and you still haven't figured it out

:

00:46:45,033 --> 00:46:45,800

sit you have

:

00:46:45,800 --> 00:46:47,066

you gotta fit in it

:

00:46:47,066 --> 00:46:49,266

and eventually you'll figure it out

:

00:46:49,800 --> 00:46:53,066

you can either distract distract yourself

:

00:46:53,133 --> 00:46:57,366

which I've done and years go by and it's still here

:

00:46:57,933 --> 00:47:01,766

and that could be through partying

:

00:47:01,766 --> 00:47:04,133

drinking drugs

:

00:47:04,166 --> 00:47:07,400

whatever you choose your addiction is could be work

:

00:47:07,400 --> 00:47:08,200

workaholic

:

00:47:08,200 --> 00:47:12,666

it could be a obsessions with being obsessive

:

00:47:12,666 --> 00:47:16,400

compulsive everybody goes one way or another not to

:

00:47:16,400 --> 00:47:19,333

to avoid what's really going on right

:

00:47:19,333 --> 00:47:21,300

so I I Learned that

:

00:47:23,200 --> 00:47:25,366

eventually because you're

:

00:47:25,366 --> 00:47:26,900

you're in a state of suffering

:

00:47:26,933 --> 00:47:28,400

when you're in that moment

:

00:47:28,400 --> 00:47:30,366

in those moments where you're lost

:

00:47:30,600 --> 00:47:33,066

so eventually that suffering

:

00:47:33,233 --> 00:47:34,766

it's gonna catch up to you

:

00:47:34,766 --> 00:47:37,466

and it's gonna guide you the right direction

:

00:47:38,166 --> 00:47:42,966

I found with me just one day I woke up and I just

:

00:47:42,966 --> 00:47:44,166

I just said that's enough

:

00:47:44,166 --> 00:47:45,633

I'm not suffering anymore

:

00:47:45,833 --> 00:47:50,433

I'm and and and and things just got it got better

:

00:47:50,433 --> 00:47:53,000

and and it's funny when you actually make that

:

00:47:53,000 --> 00:47:54,533

when you actually say that

:

00:47:54,533 --> 00:47:56,333

and you really believe that

:

00:47:57,966 --> 00:48:01,200

it doesn't take very long for an opportunity

:

00:48:01,200 --> 00:48:04,066

you see clearly I got an oppo

:

00:48:04,066 --> 00:48:06,266

that's what happened with this yeah

:

00:48:06,266 --> 00:48:07,700

that's what happened with this

:

00:48:08,000 --> 00:48:11,400

when I read your I just said I was in that moment

:

00:48:11,400 --> 00:48:14,666

I go and usually I'll think about it

:

00:48:14,666 --> 00:48:17,533

and I this time I just acted yeah

:

00:48:17,533 --> 00:48:19,566

sometimes I just do it that's right

:

00:48:19,566 --> 00:48:21,200

just do it you know

:

00:48:21,200 --> 00:48:23,566

Nike has it Nike has the best

:

00:48:23,966 --> 00:48:25,100

we're onto something logo

:

00:48:25,733 --> 00:48:27,566

just they are on the side that that company

:

00:48:27,566 --> 00:48:29,566

I think I think they might make it that company

:

00:48:29,566 --> 00:48:30,833

there's something to that company

:

00:48:30,833 --> 00:48:32,233

I think they're gonna do okay

:

00:48:33,033 --> 00:48:33,833

yeah

:

00:48:34,966 --> 00:48:36,200

that's so yeah

:

00:48:36,200 --> 00:48:39,266

I would just say sit in it be honest with yourself

:

00:48:39,733 --> 00:48:42,866

eventually it'll it'll it'll you'll come around

:

00:48:42,866 --> 00:48:44,966

you'll have to come around because if your

:

00:48:44,966 --> 00:48:47,233

if your whole my whole life

:

00:48:47,433 --> 00:48:48,833

it was to better myself

:

00:48:48,833 --> 00:48:50,966

I always knew I wanted to improve

:

00:48:51,833 --> 00:48:53,733

and when you have that mentality

:

00:48:53,733 --> 00:48:54,866

I want to be better

:

00:48:55,800 --> 00:48:58,400

it's not easy sometimes yeah

:

00:48:58,400 --> 00:49:00,033

cause you'll be confronted with things

:

00:49:00,033 --> 00:49:02,933

you have to look at right absolutely yeah

:

00:49:02,933 --> 00:49:03,966

so okay well

:

00:49:03,966 --> 00:49:05,066

as we I mean we're

:

00:49:05,066 --> 00:49:06,433

we're coming up on an hour here

:

00:49:06,433 --> 00:49:08,333

and I could talk for hours more with you

:

00:49:08,333 --> 00:49:11,566

but I let's let's sort of ask you like

:

00:49:11,566 --> 00:49:13,233

what's what's next for you

:

00:49:13,233 --> 00:49:17,133

like you're you're now in a great spot

:

00:49:17,133 --> 00:49:17,400

I mean

:

00:49:17,400 --> 00:49:19,933

maybe this is now you can put it in cruise control

:

00:49:19,933 --> 00:49:22,400

because you know you've found that sweet spot

:

00:49:22,400 --> 00:49:23,666

are you now uh

:

00:49:23,933 --> 00:49:24,766

are you I mean

:

00:49:24,766 --> 00:49:26,666

you said you're going back to visit the

:

00:49:26,666 --> 00:49:27,633

I'm still gonna call yeah

:

00:49:27,633 --> 00:49:29,133

I would like to go next

:

00:49:29,133 --> 00:49:33,366

next year is the plan to go to go and visit them

:

00:49:33,366 --> 00:49:37,600

that's for sure and we'll see if what's going on there

:

00:49:37,600 --> 00:49:41,866

I know I I do contribute and with my work

:

00:49:42,533 --> 00:49:44,766

uh with a children's

:

00:49:44,766 --> 00:49:46,233

the children's hospital

:

00:49:46,233 --> 00:49:48,800

I still have that part of me and

:

00:49:48,800 --> 00:49:51,300

but definitely want to um

:

00:49:51,400 --> 00:49:54,966

go see and I don't know what's gonna happen

:

00:49:54,966 --> 00:49:56,233

but we'll see I

:

00:49:56,233 --> 00:49:58,800

I I don't know what's gonna happen when I go back

:

00:49:58,800 --> 00:50:00,066

you know it might

:

00:50:01,333 --> 00:50:04,833

start another project maybe I'm in a better position to

:

00:50:05,033 --> 00:50:08,833

or more time on my hands to actually help them

:

00:50:09,066 --> 00:50:11,566

where before I was trying to figure things out yeah

:

00:50:11,566 --> 00:50:13,666

I I was wondering that because you've been

:

00:50:13,666 --> 00:50:15,800

it seems like and and maybe it's not the case

:

00:50:15,800 --> 00:50:17,400

but it seems like when you land somewhere

:

00:50:17,400 --> 00:50:19,166

and see something it kind of

:

00:50:19,233 --> 00:50:20,266

it kind of revs you up

:

00:50:20,266 --> 00:50:21,566

when you weren't expecting it to

:

00:50:21,566 --> 00:50:22,733

so maybe you'll get there

:

00:50:22,733 --> 00:50:24,233

see them be like oh man

:

00:50:25,866 --> 00:50:28,000

I'm planting my flag here again for six months

:

00:50:28,000 --> 00:50:29,966

who knows but no

:

00:50:29,966 --> 00:50:31,433

that's a I I definitely am

:

00:50:31,433 --> 00:50:33,466

gonna be looking forward to seeing some pictures

:

00:50:33,466 --> 00:50:34,400

of that reunion

:

00:50:34,400 --> 00:50:36,333

that's a it's such a cool story yeah

:

00:50:36,333 --> 00:50:37,466

for sure um

:

00:50:37,466 --> 00:50:39,166

for sure and yeah

:

00:50:39,166 --> 00:50:39,966

now that's a it

:

00:50:39,966 --> 00:50:42,033

it's been amazing hearing your story

:

00:50:42,033 --> 00:50:45,733

and no thanks for having me yeah

:

00:50:45,733 --> 00:50:47,200

we'll we'll chat more for sure

:

00:50:47,200 --> 00:50:48,466

I mean this is uh

:

00:50:48,733 --> 00:50:49,633

it's uh

:

00:50:49,633 --> 00:50:52,933

exactly what this is all about is just like the

:

00:50:52,933 --> 00:50:54,566

the amazing things people do

:

00:50:54,566 --> 00:50:56,500

that are right under our noses that

:

00:50:57,133 --> 00:50:58,533

you know who would have known right

:

00:50:58,533 --> 00:50:58,933

I'm sure

:

00:50:58,933 --> 00:51:01,133

I don't know if you've told that story much before

:

00:51:01,133 --> 00:51:02,566

to anybody but uh

:

00:51:02,966 --> 00:51:03,800

it's uh

:

00:51:03,800 --> 00:51:07,500

I would only I would tell it when I was fundraising

:

00:51:07,633 --> 00:51:08,066

hmm right

:

00:51:08,066 --> 00:51:09,600

my experiences fundraising

:

00:51:09,600 --> 00:51:11,666

but I I'm not that type right

:

00:51:11,666 --> 00:51:15,233

and I'm uncomfortable it makes me uncomfortable

:

00:51:15,233 --> 00:51:16,766

I'm just getting comfortable

:

00:51:16,833 --> 00:51:17,566

yeah well

:

00:51:17,566 --> 00:51:18,266

I mean it's

:

00:51:18,266 --> 00:51:19,533

it's definitely I'm

:

00:51:19,533 --> 00:51:21,966

I'm happy you are comfortable enough to tell it today

:

00:51:21,966 --> 00:51:23,766

and to talk about it it's a

:

00:51:23,766 --> 00:51:25,266

it's a really cool yeah

:

00:51:25,566 --> 00:51:27,833

bunch of initiatives that you've gone through

:

00:51:27,833 --> 00:51:29,200

and you know

:

00:51:29,200 --> 00:51:29,866

as

:

00:51:29,866 --> 00:51:32,666

it also kind of speaks to the power of one person too

:

00:51:32,666 --> 00:51:34,333

which we didn't even talk about where

:

00:51:34,333 --> 00:51:34,666

you know

:

00:51:34,666 --> 00:51:37,200

you're talking about governments sending people

:

00:51:37,200 --> 00:51:38,866

and all these corruption

:

00:51:38,866 --> 00:51:40,966

all these things and I'm sure there was help

:

00:51:40,966 --> 00:51:42,066

and I'm sure there were people

:

00:51:42,066 --> 00:51:43,800

around you that were doing the work with you

:

00:51:43,800 --> 00:51:46,100

but you were really one person who

:

00:51:46,566 --> 00:51:49,000

made a decision to go against the grain

:

00:51:49,000 --> 00:51:52,233

to go against big organizations and get something done

:

00:51:52,466 --> 00:51:55,600

and it paid off so congratulations

:

00:51:55,600 --> 00:51:56,866

it paid off but you

:

00:51:56,866 --> 00:51:59,333

I had to learn really fast Daniel

:

00:51:59,466 --> 00:52:01,866

because while I was there

:

00:52:01,866 --> 00:52:06,366

there were so many bad actors trying to be my friend

:

00:52:07,000 --> 00:52:09,566

and I figured that out really fast

:

00:52:09,600 --> 00:52:11,400

and they won't they made me

:

00:52:11,400 --> 00:52:13,866

they actually prepared me for that

:

00:52:13,866 --> 00:52:17,233

that's well and when it started happening it was like

:

00:52:17,233 --> 00:52:18,600

wow you know

:

00:52:18,600 --> 00:52:21,100

because you if I had an eagle

:

00:52:22,866 --> 00:52:26,000

part of the the corrupt people hmm yeah

:

00:52:26,000 --> 00:52:29,133

well that's it you know it's so easy to get lost oh

:

00:52:29,133 --> 00:52:30,866

it is and and that's it it was it's

:

00:52:30,866 --> 00:52:32,833

it might have been on another part of the world

:

00:52:32,833 --> 00:52:35,400

but it's a microcosm of the rest of the way

:

00:52:35,400 --> 00:52:36,766

we live everywhere now you know

:

00:52:36,766 --> 00:52:38,800

you really gotta watch who you're dealing with

:

00:52:38,800 --> 00:52:40,700

you've gotta you know

:

00:52:40,800 --> 00:52:41,933

protect your own

:

00:52:41,933 --> 00:52:44,766

know what you're there for and stick to your values

:

00:52:44,766 --> 00:52:46,700

which is not an easy thing to do

:

00:52:46,866 --> 00:52:48,866

because there's a lot of temptation everywhere

:

00:52:48,866 --> 00:52:51,933

and a lot of people telling you things that you might

:

00:52:51,933 --> 00:52:55,633

uh wanna believe but really shouldn't so yeah

:

00:52:55,633 --> 00:52:58,166

exactly you you made it out the other side though

:

00:52:58,233 --> 00:53:00,000

we're we're here yeah yeah

:

00:53:00,000 --> 00:53:01,333

so that's that's awesome yeah

:

00:53:01,333 --> 00:53:03,333

well it's that's a good thing

:

00:53:03,533 --> 00:53:05,633

so if if if people wanna find you

:

00:53:05,633 --> 00:53:06,000

I mean let's

:

00:53:06,000 --> 00:53:07,333

let's give you a plug here

:

00:53:07,333 --> 00:53:10,466

because people are now gonna be interested in probably

:

00:53:10,466 --> 00:53:10,766

you know

:

00:53:10,766 --> 00:53:12,833

buying and selling all their houses with you also

:

00:53:12,833 --> 00:53:14,133

so if they're oh yeah

:

00:53:14,200 --> 00:53:15,500

if well like

:

00:53:15,733 --> 00:53:17,266

let's let's make sure that if people

:

00:53:17,266 --> 00:53:18,600

if people wanna find you you know

:

00:53:18,600 --> 00:53:21,033

you why don't you tell us your website or any of your

:

00:53:21,033 --> 00:53:21,766

you know social media

:

00:53:21,766 --> 00:53:26,100

it's a philguastella.com is my website

:

00:53:26,366 --> 00:53:28,966

I'm with Remax Realtron Realty

:

00:53:29,033 --> 00:53:31,333

I just got there about a month ago

:

00:53:31,566 --> 00:53:34,300

so I've been really busy rebranding everything

:

00:53:34,433 --> 00:53:36,733

and getting things going

:

00:53:36,733 --> 00:53:38,200

it hasn't been an easy transition

:

00:53:38,200 --> 00:53:43,333

but anyways I'm almost there and and we're gonna

:

00:53:43,333 --> 00:53:45,133

I feel good about my move

:

00:53:45,400 --> 00:53:48,300

and I like the support at the brokerage

:

00:53:48,800 --> 00:53:53,466

and this is it's my year it's my year

:

00:53:53,566 --> 00:53:55,233

I like that I like that that

:

00:53:55,233 --> 00:53:56,933

that that's the words to close on there

:

00:53:56,933 --> 00:53:59,366

it's your year I believe it

:

00:53:59,366 --> 00:54:04,366

and you know let's and I really can honestly say I've

:

00:54:04,566 --> 00:54:06,766

I've said it's my year in my head

:

00:54:06,766 --> 00:54:08,033

but it's not

:

00:54:08,233 --> 00:54:11,033

it's not the same as what I'm feeling right now

:

00:54:11,033 --> 00:54:12,400

that's right say it out loud

:

00:54:12,400 --> 00:54:13,800

say it loud say it proud

:

00:54:13,800 --> 00:54:14,833

it's your year

:

00:54:15,433 --> 00:54:16,400

right on well yeah

:

00:54:16,400 --> 00:54:16,566

well

:

00:54:16,566 --> 00:54:19,666

thank you so much for taking the time to chat today

:

00:54:19,666 --> 00:54:22,166

this was awesome and honestly

:

00:54:22,166 --> 00:54:23,033

I I do think

:

00:54:23,033 --> 00:54:25,633

a lot of people are going to take some really positive

:

00:54:25,633 --> 00:54:26,400

messages out there

:

00:54:26,400 --> 00:54:27,766

and you've inspired a lot of people

:

00:54:27,766 --> 00:54:29,066

so thanks again yeah

:

00:54:29,133 --> 00:54:33,033

and thank you for allowing me this platform to do it

:

00:54:33,400 --> 00:54:35,133

it's absolutely my pleasure

:

00:54:35,133 --> 00:54:37,233

I look forward to speaking more okay

:

00:54:37,233 --> 00:54:40,933

alright take care and we'll talk soon okay alright

:

00:54:40,933 --> 00:54:42,366

thanks Daniel bye now

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About the Podcast

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Just A Number
Age Defines Nothing

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About your host

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Daniel Steinfeld

Daniel is a father of four, entrepreneur, and open heart surgery survivor. He has seen some things, done some stuff, and is focused on sharing stories of people like him who have lived life in a way that may defy what is considered 'typical'.

As a chartered accountant, a business owner, a public speaker, a board member, a once executive for a professional sports franchise, and an avid drummer - he hasn't seen a new experience he didn't want to try. Life is about living through high highs, and sometimes low lows. In this podcast, Daniel will share his own journey and dive into amazing stories of others who have had experiences that truly prove that age is Just a Number.