Ecological Landscaping You can make a difference ELY108

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Welcome to the easy living yards podcast. Here you’ll learn how to create a beautiful eco-friendly yard. So you can enjoy a beautiful space that makes our world a better place. I’m your host, Ben Hale and I’m an ecological landscape designer and Beautiful Cincinnati Ohio. My goal is to make as many beautiful chemical-free purposeful landscapes in our world. So we can live better while helping the world around us. We cover topics from native plants, permaculture and ecological landscaping to organic gardening kid-friendly playscapes, healthy outdoor play in living with purpose. Let’s jump in and create your beautiful space that makes our world a better. Welcome to episode one hundred eight of the easy living yards podcast today guys we’re GONNA be diving deep go through some soul searching I’m going to get their deep with you We’re going to be talking about what you do matters and that’s the truth. What you do really does matter and we’re GonNa talk about it today if you don’t like these kind of introspective shows or whatever deal with it right now. Really these these do serve a purpose if kind like one of those warm fuzzy people like I am you know sometimes it’s just really important. Especially given the you know the global situation we’re dealing with with a cove in nineteen right now is that this is a perfect time to really think in you know think about who we are, what we do what our impact is what our legacy is. You know some of those really deep questions which I have talked about in previous shows and I think it bears. Resurfacing right now. This is always really important to me. I probably overthink this too much but In reality it serves us all not just ourselves but everybody when we all take some time and make sure we carve out space not just to think but also just. You know listen to our heart and to reflect on what’s important in all those things all that warm and fuzzy stuff Oh that warm and fuzzy stuff is warm and fuzzy, and it’s great. Why do we get you know turn all weird and sideways when when we get inside and think about positive feelings and things that make us feel good. And things that make us feel fulfilled right. Why does what does that turn people off I don’t get that. All right. So so today we’re going to do that before we jump in today’s show. I do want to talk about some awesome services I’m opening up with easy living yards. I’m super excited about this guys. We are going to be getting boots on the ground and boots on the the digital world as well. I guess, right? What talking about is at easy living yards, which is Aka me Ben Hale that’s that’s the whole entity of easy living yards. I don’t have some giant team you know working all these sorts of magic backyards just me. And At easy living yards, we’re opening up a design service. That’s right. So I’m going to start I’ve kind of purposely pushed away doing too much design work just simply because this business is my side hustle right now, I don’t know if you knew that some of you who’ve listened for a long time they know that but this business is is my passion in. In the way I want to make a positive impact in this world I’ve decided to do it through helping you my dear friend and teammate, and in this world of of positive impact to to make a broader positive impact on our world through landscapes we live that’s what easy living yards to me is about right I’ve defined it in so many different ways into the Definition. and. So as part of that, I’ve had to make focused efforts on producing this podcast and also working on my digital membership which right now for you guys. Is still there You know it’s it’s a great way if you’re into diy landscaping and need kind of a coaching program, that’s what the DIY. Membership is four and. In. What I want to do now is kind of expand into doing some design work. So if you guys are interested, I offered. Some multiple services moving up here. So I if you live in the Greater Cincinnati region, which is where I live my hometown proud to call it home. It’s just such a beautiful region guys anyway. Let’s. Let’s get back on track here is I’m offering in Cincinnati region both landscape design services specifically ecologically focus landscape landscape design services. So I’ll define what that is in a moment here but I’m also on top of that offering a consultation to so if you just want to.

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You know to have you know somebody come onsite and kind of look at it with a designer’s perspective and ecological perspective and to understand you know kind of the lay of the land in in maybe. Identify some issues or some opportunities that sort of thing that’s what the consulting services for. It so I offer that. Onsite in the Greater Cincinnati region both the design service, the premium design piece as well as the consultation piece And in addition, of course, the easy living yards membership, which is a digital format. So easy living yards membership is a global thing whether you live in a you know Australia or or the most of my businesses focused on the United States guys. But the reality is ecological design spans every geography of the world, right? So wherever you are. The easy living yards membership is an opportunity for you and likewise opening up digital consultation and digital design services as well. So for all of these services, let me talk about where we’re really focusing with regards. If this resonates with you, I wanNA help you so again. As kind of a tagline, my new tagline. I’m always trying out new ones but. Right, now we help your yard be a beautiful space that makes our world a better place. So. Basically. If if you really looking to create a positive impact, the year landscape, there’s a couple of buckets where I, I looked to do that. And I hope you do too. So if you’re looking to create a positive inspe- impact with your space beyond just looking pretty. That’s where I’m really interested because I believe that our landscapes are ever more important these days and we’re GonNa talk about that in today’s show as well. Are Ever Evermore important to to create that positive impact and so the bucket on talking about our of broken out into land life and health where easy living yards really wants to focus and I want to help you focus there too. So with the land we’re talking about ecological design, native landscaping, Rain Gardens, or rain water management runoff management, low maintenance lawns in organic landscaping. So those are kind of some of those buzzword topic areas that were really focusing on with life. We’re talking about you know a broader life beyond humanity. So pollinator Gardens, Butterfly Gardens, HABITAT, restoration bird, friendly landscapes, that sort of thing. Okay. And likewise with health. So this is where it kind of brings the human element into it. So we’re talking about permaculture systems if you’re familiar with permaculture So you know regenerative agriculture on home scale is really where I’m trying to focus on right now rainwater collection, healthy landscapes, healthy food production also really important piece that fits into here is healthy childhoods. And I and that’s Kinda deliberately broad thing. But basically making sure that our children have a beautiful interactive and safe place to play outdoors. Okay. That’s stimulating educational interactive and draws them outside. That’s those are the buckets of where I want to help you create a beautiful space that makes her world a better place. Okay. So going over basically, you just go over to easy living. Yards dot com slash services, and you see the whole array of services now that we’re offering. So I’m super excited to work with you guys I. Hope Likewise, you feel as excited as well. Basically, what I’m trying to do is provide a diverse palette of help for wherever you need it. So we have free tons of free resources rate. So the easy living yards podcast is. One of those right to free podcasts after tons of information when you’re ready to go deeper, of course, I have if you sign up to my email list. So any of the free downloads that I talk about on the shows you can always s when you asked me a question, you get on email list as well. I offer tons of free resources through my email lists. Those are ways if you know if you simply can’t afford to work with me on a deeper level, those are free resources that are. Also, provide immense value to help you move forward. Okay and when you’re ready to work with me I I’m trying to offer that diverse array of support. So from the DIY landscaper with easy living yards, membership consultation services to fool on design services and locally design and sometimes even install work. Okay. So that’s where we’re going with easy living yards. So wanted to get just. kind of lengthy but I wanted to share all of these resources with you guys since it’s brand new and go check it out. Easy living yards, dot com slash services. Okay. So let’s jump back into today’s show. Really today’s going to be well, I, always say this today I’m thinking it’s going to be kind of a short show. It’s really off the cuff sometimes deliberately do this where I don’t make much of a show outlined beforehand and just tried to leave it to. Speak from the heart somewhat. Okay. So that’s what I’m doing. Hampshire I’m trying to I. Know It doesn’t always sound is you know eloquent when I do that or whatever.

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I don’t consider myself an elegant guy to begin with. So. Today’s show I just really WANNA I wanted to be as raw as possible. See you guys can feel as genuine about this show as possible into to really just you know I it makes me kind of feel vulnerable. When do shows like this and I hope it just helps you feel a little bit more vulnerable with yourself and to feel comfortable with yourself being a little bit vulnerable to really. Just, Kinda crack open that hardshell of our heart that we sometimes have to get to our sensitive space to open up and really think about these big picture questions because this stuff matters guys were trained with our conventional lifestyle. You know you know go to school you know study sit still You know pick job that that fits you that you know learn your math like all that stuff, right? Sounded like Pink Floyd here You know it kind of shuts us off from from listening to the heart in the creative side, and I’ve had to work over the past several years to try and open that. Up for me and that’s really where easy living yards was born from was this this this softer creative side of me that you know as outside of my formal education I’ve self educated just through intense passion in all this space of landscape design of of permaculture design of ecological systems, of native habitats. All of that stuff you know is all just passion driven self education and in personal drive to make a positive difference and I’ve been very fortunate for one that I have. You know some education practice of of self discovery that has helped and also I have a background is a kid I was home schooled for for quite a few years. So. It kind of gave me that kernel of of confidence that I can go and learn whatever I want to whenever I want to and I think you have some of that too because you’re listening to a podcast. All right. This is a form of digital media that didn’t exist twenty years ago that you know is I. Hope you find incredibly educational in a space that you’re trying to learn about right. So you’re doing the same thing too and I encourage you to continue to do. So that’s what today’s show is about is for us to really dig into what matters and do our actions. Our personal actions really matter especially in this this you know crazy. Society we live in right now where every issue is such a polarizing issue whether we’re talking about religion race ethics politics you know you name it it’s super polarizing in and it seems like there’s just a hotbed of of emotions you know everybody’s triggered. So easily with all these these hot button issues right and and do you know whether you feel one way or another? It seems like while there’s just as many people that feel opposite right and so do my actions really matter right? Are we just lost in the wash of all the noise of the crazy you know media drumming that goes on and so I wanNA, stop us and turn off that. TV. Turn off the Social Media Feed And you know turn off the radio, the news updates and to say, yes, what you do matters okay. What you do does matter if you choose to do it in a way that’s purposeful. Right. So, if you think about how I end each show rate. I talked about living with passion and making tomorrow better than today. That’s a deliberate sign off on my part because it you know it’s funny. It has nothing to do with landscaping, right but. I truly believe what we do with our landscapes should reflect how we feel about the world around us and how we feel about ourselves to, and that’s where ties completely back in full circle to really are landscapes had the opportunity to provide a positive impact for us and for the world around us in. Likewise, our actions in our thoughts have the opportunity to provide a positive impact for ourselves. The people we know and the world around us. Okay it might not you know. Meet some bottom line for some giant nameless faceless corporation or something. But that doesn’t mean it doesn’t matter. That’s what we’re trained to believe as if it doesn’t help you know lead to some bottom line profit margin. We’re trained to believe, but the reality is. That’s not the stuff that matters. That’s not the stuff that lease positive legacy behind right and if we want to have a legacy to leave behind. What do we want it to be? Okay. This is why I’m here. Guys I. Hope it’s why year here’s will. Okay. It’s because I believe that. What we do matters in our own personal actions whether or not they make some you know lasting impact on whatever it’s we feel and how we act and what we believe in and the actions we take based on our beliefs that collectively.

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You know speak right to other people. So they can convert people to the way we believe in. So passionately, and likewise by growing this grassroots movement of people that believe an act whether or not. It makes some apparent difference where they’re not. You know they get featured on the front page of the newspaper that nobody reads anymore. Sorry I couldn’t help myself you know. It’s not about the the You know the the the. Is What, where’s the word I’m trying to say like it’s not about the recognition of what you do. Okay. It’s about the action and the impact it has to you and to the people or the world you you intend that impact to be okay and what I’m talking about too is just leaving a legacy legacy of positivity, a legacy of positive impact in a legacy that will will last and may never get thanked by a human. But it may. Provide beneficial habitat for some endangered species of insect that’s trying to you know expand its range to some from some pocket prairie to you another. You know another grassland nearby or something. Right? We may never know our impact. Okay. But what matters is? That we believe, we can make an impact. Okay. I’m not trying to be incredibly redundant, but I’m trying to just you know kind of. Approaches from as many angles as I can to help make it clear that what we do actually does matter even though it seems like in this noisy noisy noisy distracting world that it’s so easy to get lost. Okay. The other pieces it feels so lonely, right it feels so lonely especially like. Again for my own experience here, right. We Made A. My wife and I, we made a dedicated decision that we’re going to stop synthetic chemical use on our property. One simple decision, right? You’d think it doesn’t really matter. But. Just that one simple decision has had a widespread effect on her relationship with our neighborhood. It’s crazy how much people fight you when you choose A. Decision that goes counter to mainstream decisions and it also. It you know it’s it’s counter to their perception of beauty and what’s right and the funny thing is they roenick thing is we made that decision because we felt it was right and it was safe. It was the safe decision for ourselves for our family or young children. Okay and so. It’s just so funny that people fight you when you make a decision and you act upon what you feel is right and so if feels incredibly lonely, it can be you know it can feel. So lonely if you choose to plant some native plant instead of some, you know exotic invasive that everybody else plants on the street. People, fight you but it’s your yard. It’s your landscape with the reality is unfortunately with the way our society is structured. We we somewhat need to integrate with our community in so many ways. That’s a great and wonderful thing right as we should want to integrate with our community, but it makes it difficult when we choose something that we feel is right and it goes against the grain of what is normal. Okay. And so I’m here especially in our hyper connected world to say, you are not alone if you WanNa make this choice or if you have made this choice. And you’re struggling with it and you’re feeling lonely you’re feeling you know like sticking out like a sore thumb. With your neighbors. I want to let you know that you are not alone. Okay and what I’m trying to do as best as I can with the easy living yards community is to do just that to develop a community. Okay. If it’s not very interactive listening to a PODCAST, right? So right now I’m recording this into dead space right I’m going to publish it on the Internet and you’re GonNa get to listen to it. You know fast forward to now right when I’m saying now it’s going to be in the future right so that’s just the reality right and so it’s not really an interactive. Platform, but I wanted to make this as interactive as possible, and so what I’ve done is trying to structure is best. So the the easy living yards membership. His built for that for example, where I’m trying to foster community and so if you’re interested in you know Doing this on your own to creating your own space it’s incredibly inexpensive to go and join the easy living membership and it’s really what it’s designed to provide. Support Network, a coaching program but also a community and interactive community where you don’t feel alone right I’m not intending to be a sales pitch and actually while I’m here I wanNA.

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Shout out my so my membership is super small guys I. Don’t know if you know this or not but I wanNA. Thank. I WanNA thank Caitlin and Jen for being you know my all star members right now that’s right to have two members but what we’re doing is we’re providing community and we’re connecting with each other okay and if you want to join that that’s that’s awesome I want you to be part of that okay and You know if you don’t want that with the, you know the coaching program along with it. What I also have is my facebook page, the ECO friendly landscaping or facebook group read. There’s there’s easy living yards page please go over to facebook if your facebook follow easy living yards, you’ll get updates show every once in a while we do some promotional thing or whatever you sofala that. But the reality is withheld facebook works if I want to reach all of you have to pay a bunch of money to get a message to you, right. So would have done on the side of that because I want everybody to be as connected as possible as I’ve created a A. FACEBOOK group called ECO friendly landscaping. Okay. So if you go to my business page, you’ll see a link to it but also if you just search in facebook in the groups search eco-friendly landscaping, it should pop up at it pretty close to the top of the results so. Going back. The reason I’ve done that is I want to help provide community. Okay. You are not alone and that’s really what I WANNA make it clear is that when you’re struggling with some of this stuff, right, you could have the most beautiful landscape in the world. But if it’s different from your neighbors, they might hate it and they will fight you for it and that’s unfortunate right? It’s sad and And so I want you to feel supported in this process as we navigate to building a positive lasting impact through our landscapes and through the way we act and the way we live. Okay. So, go on over facebook. Join the eco-friendly landscaping group consider the membership if you want. But all in all if if you’re not interested in that stuff, you’re not on facebook you don’t WanNa join the membership. That’s fine. I’m not going to spite you for what I want you to do is to know that I care. Okay and there are plenty of other people here that listen to this show that care as well. Okay. That’s what matters you’re not alone. Keep up the good fight do what you believe in. Okay Right, now, our world needs good land stewards more than ever. Okay. More than ever. All right. We’ve altered the landscape. So much of the nation is growing so much I’m not making this into. You know some global population scheme thing here what I wanted to say though is that What we do with our landscape has so much more of an impact than we imagine because the more of us that make a detrimental impact it adds up in the more of us that make a positive impact also heads up too. So I WANNA, stand on top of my mountain right now and say do the best you can with your landscape in the best positive impact you can with your life. Because it does matter. Okay. Do what you feel is right. Our land cannot speak for itself. Right our trees cannot speak for themselves or flowers are are native insects cannot speak for themselves. Right? We have to speak for them. That’s what I’m trying to do here I. Hope You do the same. I hope you care that they are here to because we all need each other. Okay. Not just humans we. The entire biosphere we’re. Interconnected. As humans we’ve done our best to separate ourselves from that in in a way we’ve acted like the world’s most potent virus. Okay. Because we’ve caused so much destruction to landscapes around us, but we also have a wonderful wonderful positive capability. And that is the capability to heal and to cultivate into care and so that’s what I want to help you do today is to learn how to cultivate and to care into provide that positive impact that covers up some of the scars of of our human habits. Okay. The reality is we’ve scarred the land we scarred the earth we it’s just part of how we live. Okay. It’s it’s the reality right now. But we can try and do as best as we can to make it as as little of a scars possible or to heal some of the scars of the past. Okay. You can take small measurable steps to make a big measurable impact. Okay. Even if it seems small remember you’re not alone we’re in this together and and in our hyper connected world today with social media follow the right people follow the positive people, the people that inspire you. Okay. Not The people that make you feel bad about yourself or make you you know. you know tune into all the stressful stuff about these the world today. You know I have my own like private instagram feed.

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All I do I don’t to be honest. Friends if you’re listening I’m sorry I don’t follow you. I follow just a few few very few people that. Provide. Very inspiring stuff because when I I hardly ever go on instagram but when I do. I go there to feel inspired. Okay. So do things surround yourself with the things that inspire you and keep them going to help you feel when when you’re feeling alone like like I do okay. Surround yourself with the things that inspire you to build. You help you continue to move forward because it’s in those moments where the where the weakest and we’re the most willing to give up. Okay. So there is a support network for you whether it’s eco-friendly landscaping facebook group or you know your favorite followers on instagram. Follow them. You know do whatever you gotTa do to feel supported in those moments in to keep moving forward to get inspired to give back into that positive vibe of making a difference in knowing that you can make a difference. Okay. And I you know on that kind of go along with that thought, I jotted down this this short sentence A. Long sentence. Okay. It doesn’t matter the length of the sentence I jotted down this thought and so I want to read it to you. Okay. It’s not about whether you’re single impact will change the world on its own. But whether. You. Do what you feel is right in your heart. Okay I’ll read it again. It’s not about whether you’re single impact will change the world on its own but whether you do what you feel is right in your heart I truly believe that that’s what I try to to work toward because there’s so many times where Action or some belief I have and you know I, I get the rebuttal that why does that matter because you know just you by yourself can’t really changed the world, right? That’s the that’s the belief that striven the widespread complacency and disconnection throughout our entire society I believe that okay. It’s disconnected us from the land disconnected us from each other. It’s driven the growth, the hyper growth of capitalism to the detriment of our world our society. Okay. I’m getting Al Political here right that’s that’s never my intent with this show but basically, let’s go back. Let’s real back in. Okay. Hold on Ben. Right. So. If we all just acted a little bit more. Toward what we felt as right in her heart, we would make small decisions that continually build up throughout our life to make a big positive impact. Take living yards, for example, guys. All right. So rewind back to fourth grade some of you that have listened to show a couple times of her this story I keep telling the story because for one it helps me remind myself of why do what I do? Okay. When I was in Fourth Grade I started this club we picked up litter in the playground. Okay. Doesn’t sound like much to up Ben Right now, but it’s a little bit and it was a big deal. All right. And to to show you to highlight how much of a big deal it is I called this club the I help save the Earth. Club. All right. In, the I help save the Earth. Club. Kept that playground super clean of cigarette butts and a bunch of my classmates into why well I believe it’s because we as fourth graders believed that. You know once I was able to convince my fellow fourth graders that you know what people need to care about this world because there’s not enough people that do anymore. I don’t know where I got that idea from or that thought from is probably from some childhood experience of somebody throwing trash out the car window or something which still drives me crazy. Okay. Anyway. But the truth is picking up litter in the playground didn’t really save the Earth Right? It didn’t. But. Our collective positive action and dedicated action to what we felt was right. Did help save the Earth because fast forward I kind of forgot about that little club and stuff and. I left that school basically after fourth grade and so kind of things died there and they fell asleep. But as you can tell now easy living yards was deeply rooted in that initial. You know that initial I helped save the Earth Club right? So you’re listening to this show. You’re an honorary member of the I help Save the club I’m grateful that you’re here because now what I’m doing a. Like I mentioned earlier. This is a side business for me right I. don’t even generate that much revenue with easy living yards. I’m a horrible businessmen guys I guess I don’t know. But what matters though is what I’m doing feels right in my heart and I hope why you’re here feels right in your heart to you too i. told you were getting warm and fuzzy today guys thanks for being here because there’s a reason you’re here.

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Okay. So let’s talk the sentence again that I wrote down. It’s not about whether you’re single impact will change the world on its own but whether you do what you feel is right in your heart. Okay our heart is a wonderful beacon toward what makes us feel fulfilled, and that’s why I do I continue to do what I do here DC living yards, and I hope you enjoy being here with me and I. Hope You come along for the ride to okay. In whatever way you feel is appropriate to be involved with easy living yards to be a part of this community. Please do so okay. So. I’m going to end with a few thoughts in provoking questions. Very simple questions but there provoking. Why do you care? Okay. I’m assuming that you’re here because you do care about our world our environment in some way because that’s what the easy living yards podcast is about right. It’s providing beautiful spaces that make your world, our world a better place, right so You transform your landscape from this. You know soul-sucking resource draining landscape where we’re out there slaving away in the summer heat just a mow the grass or whatever, or to irrigate the grass or whatever that you know maybe shouldn’t be there in the first place instead trying to figure out how we can change that space and it’s something that’s beautiful and. And, also makes a positive impact. Plants have this amazing power to you know provide habitat to give his oxygen right there the generators of oxygen for our world. You know they’re amazing right? and. Humans have this amazing impact to to perceive. What is good or you know what? How can we make things better or how can we help nature you know? Re Heal itself. Right. Those are all things that you know you know A. A dear can’t do in the woods right they can only eat the plants that they’re used to eating and you know keep going in and raise their young right. But we as humans have that wonderful gift to be able to pause and to think about what feels right now hurt, right? And so. I ask you again why do you care? And when you think about that, reflect on that, I hesitate to use the word think actually because this isn’t a cognitive process. This is a heart driven process. Okay. So we gotta get a brain out of the way. Really focused on understanding from our heart. Why do we care because in that little kernel of an answer that you might find? That’s the driver for. What makes you originally want to care about this earth in the first place and it might be different for each of us. Right, but understanding that and in feeling that feeling in your heart what emotionally drives you to want to even think about what you’re landscape does. All right. Instead of it being the place that you you know traverse across in blink passed as you go on your way out your busy day. How can you know? Rest assured knowing that that place is a beautiful space that’s making a positive impact. How can rest assured that your actions in this world make a positive impact and legacy is something you can think that your you know your kids one day, it will be proud of you for. You can feel that one day hopefully, the natural world we’d be proud of maybe not even be perceptive, but you can rest assured knowing that you did your part, right? So why you care? What is your story right I’ve told you this little story I’ll I’ll tell it again about my fourth grade experience I can tell you many more stories like that. Okay. What’s your story? What? What’s your story that drives you that captivates you and? Makes you the hero on your own journey? You know we’re all on our our heroes journey. Until the day we stop breathing we’re still on that journey fighting and climbing and striving for something better. So so what’s that for you? What’s your Hero’s journey that brings you marching forward? You Know Waking Up to a new day inspired in Ray to fight for you know your your heroes heroes. I lost my train of that. You know you fighting in striving for your hero’s journey. Okay and to to that you know. Wonderful Climax of of your life. Right. Okay. So maybe you don’t have your story. What can your story be? So let’s end on those notes. Why do you care? Why do you care about the earth? Why do you care about making a positive legacy a positive impact? Okay. What’s your story? Or what can your story be? Maybe we need to rewrite the script, right? This is the time to think about that stuff.

00:35:01 – 00:35:48

Our guys again make sure you go over to easy living yards, dot com slash services there. I’m offering a wide array of services to help you wherever you are in your landscape, and of course, we always have the free easy living yards podcast subscribe to. So make sure you subscribe to the show if you haven’t left a review, make sure you do so if you’re ready to really transform. Your yard go over to easy living yards, dot com slash services. As always if you have a question, you can always go to go over to easy living yards, dot com slash ask and right there you can just ask me a question super easy to do and I’ll get back to you. That’s it will be me responding to you directly with your questions so I’m happy to help guys as. As always, thanks for tuning in. Make sure you live with passion and make tomorrow better than today.