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THE  GREAT  WALL  

Great  Wall  
THE  GREAT  DOOR  
THE  GREAT  QUESTION   Door  God  
  Jack  Carney  –  Auckland,  New  Zealand  2017  
  Note:  this  is  an  Autobiography  I  wrote  in  2009  
  while  living  in  China  for  a  Chinese  audience  but  
  it  still  speaks  for  me  8  years  later.  
 
 
A   Wall   protects   but   also   imprisons.   A   Door  
permits  escape  but  also  admits  the  unwanted.  A  
T Wall  alone  is  a  Door  fearing  its  freedom  to  open.  
A   Door   alone   is   a   Wall   fearing   its   responsibility   to  
protect.   Only   together   can   they   make   being  
Human  a  Home  rather  than  a  Prison  or  Fortress.  
Then  the  Question  grows,  What  Are  Humans  For?  
 
Attending  &  Intending  The  University  Of  You  
Jack,  Great  Wall,  2006  
 
This  is  an  introduction  to  a  person  I  have  known  all  my  life  but  who  I’m  still  
learning  about  –  and  who,  it  seems,  the  more  I  understand  the  more  I  have  to  
learn  about!  I’m  speaking  of  me,  myself,  I  and...perhaps  you  too?    
 
American,   Canadian,   Australian   –   three   citizenships,   three   lifetimes   in  
each   country…and   now   the   fourth   lifetime   in   the   fourth   country,   China,  
for  the  past  six  years.  But  my  only  real  Citizenship  is  of  
the   Cosmos…I   am   a     Cosmopolitan,   at   Home   in   the  
Universe.   Always   for   me   as   for   Benjamin   Franklin,  
“Where  liberty  dwells,  there  is  my  country”  –  and  that  
country  is  Me,  and  for  now,  that  Me  is  in  the  Middle  
Kingdom:  China.  In  this  short  autobiographical  piece  I  wish  to  take  you  on  a  
tour  through  my  University  of  You.    

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 Note:   I   consider   each   person   as   a   “University”   which  
should   be   the   main   school   they   attend   and   intend   for  
Self-­‐Understanding   which   should   be   the   goal   of  
humanity.  
 
Currently,   among   other   roles,   as   an   “Amateur”   (doing  
out  of  love)  I  play  at  being  a  FreeEacher  (rhymes  with  teacher  but  means  
being   a   Resource   for   your   Source),   a   personal   Mentor   for   Self-­‐
Understanding,  a  Researcher  of  The  Great  Question  and  a  Philosopher  (one  
who  loves  wisdom)  and  a  Poet  (one  who  makes  things).  As  a  “Professional”  
(doing   to   make   money)   I   work   as   a   consultant   for   professional   and  
organizational   development,   teach   a   wide   variety   of   business   and  
humanities  courses,  and  act  as  a  counselor  to  help  persons  grow  through  
life’s  difficulties.  To  sum,  I  make  my  living  by  teaching  and  learning  –  you  
can  say  I  learn  a  living  as  well  as  earn  it…I  also  yearn  one  when  my  poet  
displaces  my  philosopher.        
 
One  of  the  reasons  I  came  to  teach  and  learn  in  China  was  my  interest  in  
Confucian  philosophers,  Kongzi,  Mengzi,  and  Xunzi  and  the  Neo-­‐Confucians  
such   as   Zhu   Xi   and   Wang   Yangming.   Also,   from   the   20th   century   I   have  
enjoyed   Chinese   philosophers   like   Lin   Yutang   who   wrote   such   modern  
classics   as   The   Importance   of   Living.   I   often   quote   him:   “A   good   traveller   is  
one   who   does   not   know   where   he   is   going   to,   and   a   perfect   traveller   does  
not   know   where   he   came   from.”   Along   with   Chinese   philosophers   I   visit  
Chinese  poets  such  as  Li  Bai,  Du  Fu,  Wang  Wei  and  Li  Shangyin.  
 
So   I   lean   my   right   ear   to   the   Self-­‐Knowledge   of   Socrates  
and  my  left  ear  to  the  Self-­‐Cultivation  of  Kongzi  to  glean  a  
little   of   their   wisdom   of   ignorance   understood   or  
withstood.  I  don’t  hear  from  them  any  easy  answers  to  the  
Human  Condition  and  their  questions  are  even  harder.  One  
of   my   favorite   modern   classical   music   pieces   is   by   the  
American   composer,   Charles   Ives.   It’s   titled:   The  
Unanswered   Question.   When   I   listen   to   it   I   think   about   the  
“The  Unquestioned  Answers”  of  which  too  many  abound.    
 
I   tend   to   turn   away   from   anyone   who   claims   to   know   the   “Answer   to   Life”  
for   everyone.   Whether   they   want   to   charge   you   money   or   obedience   or  
both  –  I  doubt  their  claims.  Alas,  too  many  of  us  (and  when  younger  this  
has  included  me),  want  to  be  Saved  (with  a  Capital  S!).  And  the  Saviors  prey  

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on   and   pray   for,   this.   How   I,   or   anyone   else,   can   claim   to   teach   when   I  
know  so  little  and  help  when  I  am  at  times  so  helpless,  is  one  of  the  more  
interesting  foibles  of  human  nature  that  I  am  heir  to.  Still,  I  hope  I  might  
have   some   understandings   to   share   of   what   being   human   means.   And   I  
hope   enough   students   and   clients   think   my   FreeEaching   and   consulting  
activities  make  their  lives  more  meaningful  –  and  are  willing  to  exchange  
their  money  to  make  my  life  affordable!  
 
To  give  you  an  idea  of  how  I  work  
as   a   FreeEacher-­‐-­‐Resource   for  
your  Source  this  is  what  I  offer  as  
my  services:    
 
I  help  you  enter  your  “University  of  You”  and  obtain  degrees  of  Self-­‐Other  
Understanding.   I   facilitate   your   self-­‐organisation   and   self-­‐control   through  
critical  reason  and  directed  emotion.  I  believe  you  are  the  final  authority  on  
how   your   life   should   be   lived.   I   help   you   explore,   discover   and   achieve   a  
meaningful   life   according   to   your   values   while   caring   for   others   and  
yourself.    
• Discover  what  will  give  you  optimum  meaning  and  self-­‐value.  
• Recognise  and  rationally  rank  your  values  to  direct  your  needs.    
• Determine  the  goals  and  the  means  to  achieve  them  that  will  best  meet  
your  needs  and  embody  your  values.    
• Develop  a  career  or  life  “P.O.E.M.”  (P.lan,  O.rganize,  E.xecute,  M.onitor)  
• Cope  better  with  intimate  or  work  relationship  difficulties.  
• Construct   a   life   review   structure   to   understand   your   past   life   choices   so  
that  you  can  create  a  more  fulfilling  future.  
• Generate  new  opportunities  for  personal  and  professional  growth.  
• Solve  problems  in  your  business,  workplace,  family  or  other  organisations.  
• Get  thoughtful  feedback  using  me  as  friendly,  supportive  sounding  board.  
 
When   I   consult   for   organizations   I   seek   to   address   and   enhance   the  
following  essential  workplace  skills:  
• Working  Productively    
• Learning  Effectively    
• Communicating  Clearly      
• Working  Cooperatively    
• Acting  Responsibly    
• Valuing  Self  Positively    
• Thinking  Critically  And  Creatively    

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 Freedom Responsibility Sympathy Knowledge

 
 

UNDERSTANDING

When   I   FreeEach   or   consult   what   I   am   really   doing   is   asking   the   Great  

Question  which  is  really  a  Great  Quest,  and  that  is:  What  are  humans  for?  I  
explore   and   evaluate   this   question   and   quest   and   attempt   to   obtain  
tentative   answers   through   considering   four   virtues:   freedom,  
responsibility,   sympathy   and   knowledge   –   all   of   which   sum   to   the   fifth  
foundational  virtue  of  understanding.    
 
Some  of  the  means  I  use  to  coax  a  few  truer  answers  out  of  individuals  are:  
various  Personality  Models  (Temperament,  Type  and  Traits);  the  study  of  
the  human  physiology  (Left  &  Right  Brains,  Triune  Brain,  Polyvagal  Theory,  
Panksepp’s   7   Emotional   Systems,   etc.)   applied   to   biofeedback   and   “brain  
change”   technology   and   understanding   Human   Consciousness;   cross-­‐
culture   studies   especially   Asian   East   and   European   West   cognitive  
differences;   male-­‐female   differences   understood   through   evolutionary  
psychology;   personal   and   organizational   development,   meaning   how   to  
make   human   meaning   through   intimate   relationships   or   in   the   pursuit   of  
profit   in   free   market   competition   both   of   which   require   reason   (IQ)   and  
emotion   (EQ)   understood   and   artfully   used;   meta-­‐learning   or   learning  
about   learning   that   includes   Learning   Styles   and   Self-­‐Directed,   Action  
Learning;  the  study  of  history  from  classical  liberal  and  Austrian  economics  
perspectives;  and  to  arbitrarily  end  this  list,  I  put  the  concept  of  Freedom  
as  the  first  and  last,  the  means  and  end,  of  what  being  human  may  mean.  
 
But  back  to  my  Great  Wall  and  Great  Door  
–   two   concrete,   human   creations   that   for  
me   richly   symbolize   the   Great   Unanswered  
Question   for   humans.   Wall   of   All.   Door   of  
More.   The   “Great   Wall”   as   ordered   into  
place  by  China  to  keep  out  Foreigners;  and  the  “Great  Door”  
as   desperately   knocked   upon   by   many   and   stepped   through   by   fewer.   It  

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seems  to  me  we  all  go  back  and  forth  between  being  more  or  less  a  Door  
or  a  Wall  in  our  orientation  to  life.  I  call  Walls  minds  because  they  separate,  
divide,   conquer,   differentiate   and   remain   stable.   I   define   Doors   as   hearts  
because  they  connect,  join,  co-­‐operate,  merge,  and  change.  I  think  we  all  
face   the   Great   Wall   of   Knowledge-­‐Responsibility   and   we   all   seek   the   Great  
Door  of  Sympathy-­‐Freedom.  I  peer  into  the  flow  of  faces  of  those  I  pass  by,  
meet,   or   love,   and   I   look   for   which   parts   of   Being   they   are   standing   before  
to  Become.  Then  I  attempt  to  discover  what  kind  of  Dwelling  each  person  is  
making   out   of   her   Doors   and   Walls   in   whatever   proportion   she   may  
express  and  how  she  is  living  within  and  out  of  it.  
 
Now   let   me   invite   you   into   this   Jack   of   so   many  
different   meanings   and   the   many   Trades   he   has  
made   with   the   world   to   learn   who   he   is   and  
answer   his   Great   Question.   Here   is   a  
sampling  (by  no  means  all!)  of  his  life  wonderings  
and   wanderings   to   date.   Guide:   note   the  
numbering  of  each  phrase  and  consider  each  topic  
as   a   distinct   persona   or   one   of   the   parts   of   the  
Whole  Person  Jack  has  staged  and  played  –  one  of  
his  “Many  Me’s”  or  TheMes  of  Jack.  
 
1.In  love  and  pulled  to  completion  with  the  opposite  sex  since  seven  years  old  
2.Newspaper   delivery   boy   at   eight   3.Regular   summer  
gardener  for  Masonic  Old  Folks  home  at  nine  4.Altar  boy  
at   ten   and   would   be   preacher   who   gave   communion   to  
friends   in   his   attic   bedroom   5.   Self-­‐taught   golfer   from  
twelve   shooting   in   low   80s   at   fourteen   when   suddenly   quit   6.Teen   car  
mechanic   and   builder   of   hot   rods   7.Long   distance   runner   of   heroic   loneliness  
8.High  scoring  guard  on  high  school  basketball  team  9.Starter  of  high  school  
car   and   gun   clubs   10.Farm   hand   and   back-­‐hoe   operator   and   dump   truck  
driver   11.College   freshman   to   become   automobile  
engineer   executive   but   instead   failed   as   a   fraternity   party  
boy   nearly   opting   to   talk   to   dolphins   with   John   Lilly   but  
finally  fell  for  a  60s  drop  out  after  the  first  year  12.Shoe  
salesman   and   assistant   manager   for   JC   Penney   that  
almost   domesticated   him   13.TV   Route   66   follower   who   changed   his   name   to  
Todd  and  wore  dark  glasses  while  driving  across  and  up  and  down  America  
too   many   times,   running   from   or   towards   what?   14.Self-­‐trained   ambulance  
attendant   while   sleeping   next   to   corpses   in   funeral   home   room   that   came  

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 with  the  job  15.Surfer  seeking  perfect  crisp  waves  at  dawn  
and  keener  of  Beachboy  lost  love  songs  16.Single  semester  
student  of  Torrance  California  Jr.  College  where  he  meet  
his   first   adult   mentor   and   began   lifetime   habit   of  
omnivorously  devouring  dozens  of  books  on  all  subjects  at  
once  and  became  the  poet  he  has  always  remained  with  the  help  of  Rainer  
Marie   Rilke   17.Lumberjack   dancer   with   spikes   on   logs   bobbing   in   ice   cold  
brilliant  B.C.  waters  18.Tree  planter  racing  to  plant  the  most  seedlings  on  in-­‐
the-­‐face  slopes  19.Apprenticed  carpenter  and  house  painter  whose  teachers  
kicked   him   in   his   butt   to   run   his   own   business   20.Zen   haiku  
poet   in   an   leaky   shack   in   the   middle   of   the   B.C.   rain   forest  
21.Spiritual  seeker  on  mountaintops  22.Short-­‐lived  and  minor  
madman-­‐guru   23.Monk   in   Catholic   monastery   24.Published  
writer   of   poetry   and   prose   25.General   building   contractor  
26.Self-­‐taught   architect-­‐builder   of   houses   and   an  
industrialized   building   system   based   on   hyperbolic   paraboloids  
27.Buckminster   Fuller   Green   preacher   out   to   save   the   world   28.Brother   to  
sister  who  as  normal  brainwashed  citizen  just  shook  her  amazed  and  amused  
head   at   him   and   hugged   him   anyway   29.Father   of   adopted   girl   and   boy   with  
son  as  schizophrenic  suicide  30.Widower  to  two  wives  nursed  to  their  death  
from  cancer  by  him  as  full-­‐time  carer  31.Divorcee  to  2  wives  still  and  always  
loved   32.Entrepreneur   who   wrote   business   plans   and   obtained   venture  
capital   33.Owner-­‐operator   of   women's   clothing   design   and   manufacture  
34.Inventor   of   garden   and   household   gadgets   sold   to  
Walmart   with   two   patents   35.Book   seller   and   PR   person  
for  Border’s  Books  36.Adult  education  teacher  37.Owner-­‐
operator   of   male/female   permanent   partnership   agency  
38.Palliative  care  advocate/teacher  from  the  dying  of  two  
wives   39.Undergraduate   degree   after   thirty-­‐eight   year   hiatus   40.Aged   care  
teacher   41.Train-­‐the-­‐trainer   and   MBTI   certification   42.Researcher   in   mental  
health   43.Educator   creating   and   delivering   relationships   courses   for  
government   agency   44.Andy   Warhol   moment   of   international   infamy   as  
falsely   accused   promoter   of   Lesbian   love   for   older   women   that   ruined   a  
counseling  career  45.Teacher  in  Chinese  universities  through  chance  and  love  
of   Chinese   wisdom   and   Han   Suyin’s   wonderful   autobiographical   novel   A  
Many-­‐Splendoured   Thing   and   its   Hollywood   movie  
Love  Is  A  Many  Splendored  Thing  46.Consultant  for  
Chinese  organizations  47.Incredibly  fortunate  man  to  
have   found   his   Other   Half   Katharine…And   another  
dozen  or  so  sorties….  Whew,  this  is  a  careen  in  place  of  a  career!    

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 Jack’s  last  house  in  Canada  he  designed  and  built  in  1981  
 
Trying   to   stay   personal   but   with   some   abstraction   to   leaven   the   self-­‐
reference,   I   will   address   the   Void   in   the   middle   of   my   life   –   a   Black   Hole  
composed  of  loss,  death  and  the  separate  self.  It  was  Paul  Tillich’s  book  The  
Courage   to   Be   that   put   it   best   for   me:   because   we   are   apart   from   then   we  
must   be   a   part   of.   And   my   isolated   self   has   spent   too   many   years   in  
learning  how  to  responsibly  connect  and  be  part  of  other  lives.    Since  I  am  a  
material  atheist  and  don’t  believe  in  heaven  or  reincarnation,  for  me  this  
single  life  is  all  we  have  and  are  limited  to.  My  life  is  filled  with  deaths.  I  am  
a  cemetery  on  two  legs.  My  mother  died  when  I  was  three,  my  father  when  
I   was   fourteen   and   I   have   had   two   wives   die   in   my   arms   from   terminal  
cancer.  My  schizophrenic  son  killed  himself.  
 
The  only  response  to  this  Void  for  
me  is  love  and  work/play  (my  work  
is   play   and   my   play   is   work   –   I  
never   think   of   “retirement”  
because   I   don’t   separate   work  
from   living).   For   me   love   is   an   art  

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that   must   be   learned,   valued   and  
practiced.   Also,   I   am   a   “woman’s   man”.  
There   are   two   kinds   of   men   in   the   world:  
those   that   take   their   values   from   men  
and   who   exhibit   the   love   of   power;   and  
those   that   take   their   values   from   women  
and   exhibit   the   power   of   love.   I   am   the  
second   kind.   I   don’t   particularly   care  
what   other   men   think   of   me,   but   I   do  
care   what   women   think   of   me.   As   Plato  
put  it,  the  two  sexes  are  only  halves  and  
they   are   seeking   the   Whole   they   make  
when   they   come   together.   I   am   not   even  
half  good  without  a  woman  to  complete  
me.   This   I   know   because   I   have   been  
greatly  blessed  with  women  that  made  me  better  than  I  could  have  been  alone.  
Also,   I   found   my   “Other   Half”   –   Katharine   –   and   we   created   a   Great   Love.   She  
died  hand  in  mine  December  17,  1996.  My  epitaph  points  to  her  value:    
From  the  Love  of  Wisdom,  through  her,  he  came  to  the  Wisdom  of  Love.  

Now, a
Questio
“Paidei
the one
propag
Paideia
speaks
the gre
was a p
princip
JacKath:  Katharine  and  Jack,  Brisbane,  Australia,  1993  
Kath & Jack, Australia what a
  They e
[Paidei
then the training of a person to make things.” 8
You
on Things at Hand, adds to this answer by suggest
Katharine’s  Paintings:  above  4  Rooms  of  Love;  below  3  Windows  of  Life  

 
Now,  a  tentative  answer  to  my  Great  Question.  And  I  believe  that  answer  
constantly  and  positively  feeds  back  to  the  question  from  which  it  emerges.  
We  will  never  know  finally  what  humans  are  for  –  because  the  truer  answers  
will  continue  enlarging  the  question  for  as  long  as  forever  is.  The  ancient  
Greeks  called  it  “Paideia”  παιδεία  and  the  ancient  Confucians  “Ren”  仁.    
These  terms  point  to  “education”  but  not  the  one  our  Collective  States  force-­‐
feed  us.  They  refer  to  the  truly  human  education  of  learning  what  being  
human  can  most  virtuously  mean.    

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E.B.  Castle’s  definition  of  Paideia  suits  me:  “The  Greeks  
believed  that  the  greatest  work  of  art  they  had  to  create  
was   a   person.   They   examined   the   principles   governing  
human  life,  asking  what  a  person  was,  body,  mind  and  
spirit.  They  expressed  the  idea  that  education  [Paideia]  
is   the   making   of   a   person,   rather   then   the   training   of   a   person   to   make  
things.”  Arthur  Waley’s  definition  of  Ren  rings  true:  "in  the  earliest  Chinese  
it   means   freemen…‘good’   as   kindness,   gentleness,   and   humanity   that  
ultimately   distinguishes   the   human   as   opposed   to   animal”.   The   Neo-­‐
Confucian   text   Reflections   on   Things   at   Hand,   adds   to   this   answer   by  
suggesting:   "The   humane   man,   if   he   seeks   to   establish   himself,   will   help  
others   to   succeed.     To   be   able   to   judge   others   by   what   one   knows   of  
oneself   is   the   method   of   achieving   humanity."   For   me   Paideia   and   Ren  
function   through   the   4   key   virtues   of   Freedom,   Responsibility,   Sympathy  
and  Knowledge  that  altogether  sum  to  the  most  basic  5th,  Understanding.  
My  Paideia  or  Ren,  in  all  my  long  shortcomings,  is  what  I  have  and  who  I  
am.  Omnia  mea  mecum  porto,  All  that  is  mine  I  carry  with  me.  
 
Thus,   whatever   I   teach   or   FreeEach   –   whether   business   courses   such   as  
marketing,   organizational   behavior   or   management;   or   humanities   courses  
such   as   cross-­‐cultural   studies   or   literature   –   what   I   really   try   to   FreeEach   is  
Paideia  or  Ren  –  answers  to  the  Great  Question  and  examples  of  the  Great  
Wall   and   Great   Door   in   Yang-­‐Yin   togetherness   creating   a   home   for   what   is  
most  human  in  and  between  us.  
 
One   of   my   favorite   ancient   Greek   philosophers  
was   Epicurus.   He   was   known   as   the   “Friendly  
Garden   Philosopher”   because   he   taught   in   a  
garden   that   was   behind   his  
house   and   in   an   open,  
informal   manner.   My  
current   goal   is   to   find  
somewhere  in  the  world  a  Community  of  Free  Friends  
who  will  help  me  grow  a  Garden  in  which  to  FreeEach.  
So  if  there  are  any  Patrons-­‐Resources  of  philosophers-­‐
poets   reading,   let   me   show   you   that   I   can   earn   our  
Garden  and  make  our  human  flowers  bloom!  I  conclude  
with  this  one  line  from  Epicurus  ,  thinking  of  all  the  wonderful  Chinese  friends  
that   have   been   bestowed   on   me   since   in   China:   Friendship   goes   dancing  
around  the  world  proclaiming  to  us  all  to  awake  to  the  praises  of  a  happy  life.  

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If  this  rather  shameless  exhibit  awakes  in  you  a  desire  to  use  my  services  as  a  
tutor-­‐coach  or  personal-­‐organizational  consultant  or  prompts  your  Patron-­‐
Resource  interests,  please  contact  me:  themesofjack@gmail.com  or    
Auckland,  New  Zealand  (64)  022  409  4035.  
 
Note:  The  visuals  here  were  chosen  by  me  to  express  my  story.    
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Sapere  Aude  (Latin,  “Dare  to  know”),    
Scire  Licit  (Latin,  “It’s  permitted  to  know”)  
 
 
Nothing  to  fear  in  gods    
Nothing  to  feel  in  death     What  Does  It  Take  to  Be  a  GentleMan?  
Good  can  be  achieved     Poem  by  Jack  
Evil  can  be  endured     Truth.  A  furious  and  artful  assault  upon  your  
Epicurus     most  unforgivable  gods.  And  within,  
  hardness  that  cuts  the  diamond  heart  to  
  shine  out  of  its  deepest  flaw  a  final  Yes.  
 
Love.  That  you  will  whenever  you  can,          
 
with  whomever  permits  that  absolutely  
 
necessary  luxury.  
 
  Mistakes.  To  take  them  as  dares  that  will  
  make  you  over  and  put  you  under,  again  and  
  again.  Preparation  to  be  wrong  and  strong  
  enough  to  claim  that  right.  
  Vulnerability.  The  wound  of  knowing  who  
                 Jack,  Auckland,  NZ,  2017   you  are.  Accepting  that  with  protest,  praise,  
  dread,  and  a  certain  overwhelming  joy.  

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CONTACT  DETAILS:  
 
Email:    
themesofjack@gmail.com  
 
Cell  phone,  Auckland,  New  Zealand:  (64)  022  409  4035  
 
Websites:    
www.ResourceForYourSource.com
www.LinkageForLife.com  
 
 
Have  a  seat-­‐-­‐join  me  in  co-­‐creating  or  participating  in  a    
Community  of  Free  Friends  in  New  Zealand!  

You are only as free as you take the responsibility to be

while allowing others to do the same.  

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