WEBVTT 00:00:24.820 --> 00:00:27.800 Good evening and welcome to live with dr. Andre 00:00:27.800 --> 00:00:31.480 Jerry your trusted space where lived experiences 00:00:31.480 --> 00:00:35.119 are shared, wisdom is gained, and purpose is 00:00:35.119 --> 00:00:38.759 refined. So on behalf of myself and Artist First 00:00:38.759 --> 00:00:40.920 Radio, I want to thank you for tuning in and 00:00:40.920 --> 00:00:43.960 for your listenership. I'm your host, Dr. Andre 00:00:43.960 --> 00:00:46.020 Jerry. And you know, it's great to be back on 00:00:46.020 --> 00:00:48.420 the airwaves after taking a bit of a hiatus. 00:00:49.259 --> 00:00:53.240 You know, every so often, life will sort of throw 00:00:53.240 --> 00:00:55.899 you a curveball. And you have to do your best 00:00:55.899 --> 00:00:58.700 to respond in the moment as best you can, right? 00:00:59.709 --> 00:01:03.090 So as some of you may know we recently had a 00:01:03.090 --> 00:01:08.049 death in the family My aunt Dale passed on this 00:01:08.049 --> 00:01:12.129 Valentine's Day Shortly after our last episode 00:01:12.129 --> 00:01:14.989 aired and this one hit a little different for 00:01:14.989 --> 00:01:19.349 me Because not only was she my favorite aunt 00:01:19.349 --> 00:01:23.590 She was also my mom's closest sister and her 00:01:23.590 --> 00:01:27.930 kids were like my favorite cousins growing up 00:01:27.739 --> 00:01:30.120 You know, they were the ones that I grew up with, 00:01:30.159 --> 00:01:32.900 who I spent my summers with and laughed with, 00:01:33.120 --> 00:01:36.859 got whoopings with. So this was a really heavy 00:01:36.859 --> 00:01:40.780 loss for me and for all of us. And because I 00:01:40.780 --> 00:01:43.819 know what it's like to lose a mother, I know 00:01:43.819 --> 00:01:47.239 how disorienting and how devastating it can be. 00:01:47.519 --> 00:01:50.299 So I wanted to be there for them and not just 00:01:50.299 --> 00:01:53.239 for the funeral part, but for those days leading 00:01:53.239 --> 00:01:56.870 up to the funeral because As I'm sure a lot of 00:01:56.870 --> 00:02:00.310 you know, there's a lot that you have to contend 00:02:00.310 --> 00:02:04.590 with right after you lose a loved one. So I wanted 00:02:04.590 --> 00:02:07.189 to be there to help them with planning, with 00:02:07.189 --> 00:02:09.810 cleaning, coordinating, whatever my cousins needed. 00:02:10.530 --> 00:02:12.729 Because I remember when my mom passed back in 00:02:12.729 --> 00:02:18.009 2020, I just wasn't present, at least not emotionally. 00:02:19.229 --> 00:02:23.469 It took every ounce of strength I had to be strong 00:02:23.469 --> 00:02:26.509 for the family while my mom was in the hospital, 00:02:27.389 --> 00:02:30.289 constantly having to deal with nurses and doctors, 00:02:30.830 --> 00:02:33.889 getting good reports, and then we get bad reports, 00:02:34.310 --> 00:02:36.490 and then we get good reports again, and so it 00:02:36.490 --> 00:02:39.849 was up and down. So I did my best to try to stay 00:02:39.849 --> 00:02:44.669 positive and stay prayed up incessantly. I was 00:02:44.669 --> 00:02:47.490 trying to keep my faith strong, you know, despite 00:02:47.490 --> 00:02:49.870 getting some of these negative reports. So when 00:02:49.870 --> 00:02:53.360 my mom finally passed, I just didn't have anything 00:02:53.360 --> 00:02:56.819 left mentally to try to figure anything out in 00:02:56.819 --> 00:02:59.740 terms of burial or funeral or any of that type 00:02:59.740 --> 00:03:03.659 of stuff. And because COVID was so new at the 00:03:03.659 --> 00:03:05.780 time, we couldn't even have a proper funeral. 00:03:06.580 --> 00:03:10.479 So it was just a lot going on. I felt really 00:03:10.479 --> 00:03:15.259 lost and numb, but I got a shout out to Erika 00:03:15.259 --> 00:03:17.699 Berry, who is a good family friend and one of 00:03:17.699 --> 00:03:20.800 my mom's many adopted children, we like to say. 00:03:22.219 --> 00:03:25.819 If it wasn't for her checking in on me and pushing 00:03:25.819 --> 00:03:29.139 me and helping me to plan a virtual memorial 00:03:29.139 --> 00:03:33.740 for my mom, I really don't know if I would have 00:03:33.740 --> 00:03:36.819 had the strength to do it. Because my sisters 00:03:36.819 --> 00:03:39.360 were going through it themselves. They were going 00:03:39.360 --> 00:03:42.419 through it worse than me. And my youngest sister, 00:03:42.680 --> 00:03:45.159 Monet, she was deployed in Japan at the time. 00:03:45.620 --> 00:03:48.819 And so we were just all trying to survive. But 00:03:48.819 --> 00:03:51.259 Tierra really stepped in and really helped us 00:03:51.259 --> 00:03:54.719 so much. She pretty much did all the heavy lifting 00:03:54.719 --> 00:03:57.419 in terms of the technical expertise and all of 00:03:57.419 --> 00:04:00.599 that stuff that goes into having a virtual memorial. 00:04:01.500 --> 00:04:03.819 She reached out to family. She did everything. 00:04:04.319 --> 00:04:07.159 She never charged me a dime. You know, she just 00:04:07.159 --> 00:04:11.360 did it out of love for my mom and wanted to make 00:04:11.360 --> 00:04:14.219 sure she had a proper sendoff. And when I tell 00:04:14.219 --> 00:04:17.180 you it was beautiful, I mean, it really hit all 00:04:17.180 --> 00:04:20.019 of the marks in terms of celebrating my mother's 00:04:20.019 --> 00:04:23.759 life and honoring her legacy as the matriarch 00:04:23.759 --> 00:04:27.459 of the family and giving us all that closure 00:04:27.459 --> 00:04:31.000 that we needed after such a devastating loss. 00:04:32.379 --> 00:04:37.240 So, you know, remembering all of that, I really 00:04:37.240 --> 00:04:39.439 wanted to make sure I showed up fully for my 00:04:39.439 --> 00:04:42.360 cousins in their time of grief. And, you know, 00:04:42.360 --> 00:04:45.879 I have to say that despite the sadness of the 00:04:45.879 --> 00:04:50.029 circumstances, It really was beautiful to see 00:04:50.029 --> 00:04:53.069 our family sort of come together. And it felt 00:04:53.069 --> 00:04:57.310 more like a reunion than a funeral. We laughed, 00:04:57.350 --> 00:05:01.009 we played music, we had dance battles. Some of 00:05:01.009 --> 00:05:03.370 you probably saw this stuff on my YouTube channel. 00:05:03.829 --> 00:05:07.610 We told stories. It was a true celebration of 00:05:07.610 --> 00:05:11.670 life. And you know, in a way, in a strange way, 00:05:12.670 --> 00:05:14.769 it sort of healed something with our family. 00:05:15.500 --> 00:05:18.399 Even for people who haven't spoken in over a 00:05:18.399 --> 00:05:21.019 decade or longer, it was like everyone put all 00:05:21.019 --> 00:05:24.420 of their pettiness and BS aside for that moment. 00:05:25.180 --> 00:05:27.259 And we really came together as a family in a 00:05:27.259 --> 00:05:30.860 way I haven't seen in a really long time. So 00:05:30.860 --> 00:05:34.839 to my family, my entire family and the Hightowers 00:05:34.839 --> 00:05:38.019 especially, I love y 'all. I know you're taking 00:05:38.019 --> 00:05:41.779 it day by day. I know it's hard, but I promise 00:05:41.779 --> 00:05:47.209 you, it does get easier with time. Okay? And 00:05:47.209 --> 00:05:49.810 for anyone listening, you know, who may be grieving, 00:05:50.689 --> 00:05:54.769 be kind to yourself because grief is a different 00:05:54.769 --> 00:05:58.930 dance for everybody. There's no normal way to 00:05:58.930 --> 00:06:04.310 grieve. There's no set timeline. So give yourself 00:06:04.310 --> 00:06:07.709 grace. Give other people grace who are grieving. 00:06:09.009 --> 00:06:12.939 So yes, a part of my hiatus has been about spending 00:06:12.939 --> 00:06:15.360 time with family and making sure that I was present 00:06:15.360 --> 00:06:19.399 during a really difficult time for us. But the 00:06:19.399 --> 00:06:25.620 other part is I've been transitioning, not in 00:06:25.620 --> 00:06:29.920 that way. I'm still a man. Okay, look, I don't 00:06:29.920 --> 00:06:31.959 have any issue with the trans community, okay? 00:06:33.220 --> 00:06:37.600 I completely sympathize with them. I can't imagine 00:06:37.600 --> 00:06:40.579 having all of that going on mentally. And then 00:06:40.579 --> 00:06:45.079 the ostracize a lot of times and the way the 00:06:45.079 --> 00:06:47.540 current administration has demonized them, I 00:06:47.540 --> 00:06:51.939 can't even imagine. But look, I'm still trying 00:06:51.939 --> 00:06:54.779 to make peace with just being a gay man. So when 00:06:54.779 --> 00:06:57.800 you start trying to talk about changing genders 00:06:57.800 --> 00:07:01.899 and all of that, it's just too much. So I'm grateful 00:07:01.899 --> 00:07:05.579 for whatever God gave me to deal with in life. 00:07:05.620 --> 00:07:08.660 I don't want that package. trying to be trans 00:07:08.660 --> 00:07:10.779 and all of that, my heart goes out to those people, 00:07:10.980 --> 00:07:15.480 okay? But, so yeah, I've been transitioning to 00:07:15.480 --> 00:07:20.100 another country, yet another country, okay? And 00:07:20.100 --> 00:07:23.240 tonight's episode, I named it Where in the World 00:07:23.240 --> 00:07:26.000 is Dr. Andre? It's just me having a little fun 00:07:26.000 --> 00:07:28.240 with the fact that I have moved all over the 00:07:28.240 --> 00:07:33.019 place. If you know me, you know I don't sit still 00:07:33.019 --> 00:07:36.810 too long. And apparently retirement didn't change 00:07:36.810 --> 00:07:40.129 any of that. But in all fairness, even though 00:07:40.129 --> 00:07:44.170 I've retired and moved to Puerto Rico, it was 00:07:44.170 --> 00:07:47.449 never my intent to stay in one spot for the rest 00:07:47.449 --> 00:07:50.829 of my life. PR is beautiful, and you know, don't 00:07:50.829 --> 00:07:53.149 get me wrong, and there's definitely parts of 00:07:53.149 --> 00:07:56.629 the island that I still haven't explored. But 00:07:56.629 --> 00:07:59.009 there's also still so much of the world that 00:07:59.009 --> 00:08:03.250 I haven't seen. Just imagine, this show... here 00:08:03.250 --> 00:08:08.209 is broadcast in over 128 countries. And I've 00:08:08.209 --> 00:08:12.910 only been to like, what, maybe five, six of these 00:08:12.910 --> 00:08:16.170 countries. And so I understand that's probably 00:08:16.170 --> 00:08:20.149 a lot more than my contemporaries. But I get 00:08:20.149 --> 00:08:23.329 this, honestly, because my parents were big travelers. 00:08:24.509 --> 00:08:26.629 My dad, I don't know how many countries he's 00:08:26.629 --> 00:08:30.899 visited during his military career. My mom she 00:08:30.899 --> 00:08:34.379 owned a charter bus service. So she was always 00:08:34.379 --> 00:08:38.039 on the road growing up. And on top of all of 00:08:38.039 --> 00:08:42.879 that, we were constantly moving when I was growing 00:08:42.879 --> 00:08:46.820 up. So it's one thing I've always been envious 00:08:46.820 --> 00:08:50.639 about my older sisters with the fact that they 00:08:50.639 --> 00:08:53.960 got to grow up in a childhood home, our childhood 00:08:53.960 --> 00:08:58.259 home on Dogwood Drive. But by the time I was 00:08:58.259 --> 00:09:01.360 eight or nine years old, My parents had already 00:09:01.360 --> 00:09:03.840 separated and you know later they got divorced 00:09:03.840 --> 00:09:06.840 or whatever And they sold the house our childhood 00:09:06.840 --> 00:09:10.960 home. So all I really knew growing up from about 00:09:10.960 --> 00:09:18.919 age 8 to 16 was Sort of that of a transient experience 00:09:18.919 --> 00:09:23.500 So by 17, I had joined the Air Force and I was 00:09:23.500 --> 00:09:27.500 already out on my own So really all I know is 00:09:27.500 --> 00:09:31.279 moving from place to place to place. That's normal 00:09:31.279 --> 00:09:35.139 for me. So it's nothing for me to pick up and 00:09:35.139 --> 00:09:37.940 move to another city, another state, another 00:09:37.940 --> 00:09:43.740 country. So right now I'm in Vietnam. I'm in 00:09:43.740 --> 00:09:48.720 Ho Chi Minh City, formerly Saigon. And if you're 00:09:48.720 --> 00:09:51.279 catching this live, it's currently, what time 00:09:51.279 --> 00:09:54.919 is it? It's 5 .09 in the morning here on a Thursday. 00:09:55.419 --> 00:09:59.379 So I'm a good 11, 12 hours ahead of you, depending 00:09:59.379 --> 00:10:02.120 on where you are in the States, on the East Coast. 00:10:02.379 --> 00:10:05.080 Basically, I'm calling from the future at this 00:10:05.080 --> 00:10:10.500 point. So yeah, I'm 11, 12 hours ahead. And I 00:10:10.500 --> 00:10:13.759 know a lot of people are wondering like, so why 00:10:13.759 --> 00:10:18.899 Vietnam of all the places I could go? And I'm 00:10:18.899 --> 00:10:21.100 gonna share this with you. It actually wasn't 00:10:21.100 --> 00:10:26.000 supposed to be Vietnam initially. I had been 00:10:26.000 --> 00:10:28.779 doing some research since about the middle of 00:10:28.779 --> 00:10:32.059 last year. I knew I wanted to explore Southeast 00:10:32.059 --> 00:10:35.500 Asia, mainly because I haven't been to this part 00:10:35.500 --> 00:10:38.340 of the world yet. I've been looking at places 00:10:38.340 --> 00:10:42.120 like Thailand, the Philippines. I was even looking 00:10:42.120 --> 00:10:45.600 at China at one point. But Vietnam was something 00:10:45.600 --> 00:10:48.960 about Vietnam. It just kept showing up. It kept 00:10:48.960 --> 00:10:51.679 showing up on my timeline. It kept showing up 00:10:51.679 --> 00:10:55.100 in conversations. in different articles I would 00:10:55.100 --> 00:10:59.259 see, it was sort of like the universe was nudging 00:10:59.259 --> 00:11:02.279 me in this direction. And after a while, I had 00:11:02.279 --> 00:11:05.440 to stop and ask myself, okay, why does this particular 00:11:05.440 --> 00:11:11.139 place keep coming up? And then my mind went to 00:11:11.139 --> 00:11:16.100 my dad and his connection to Vietnam. My dad 00:11:16.100 --> 00:11:18.460 was, and I mentioned this on other episodes, 00:11:18.519 --> 00:11:21.419 my dad was a decorated combat veteran. He was 00:11:21.419 --> 00:11:25.190 a Purple Heart recipient. He was a man who fought 00:11:25.190 --> 00:11:30.730 in the Vietnam War. So he didn't just experience 00:11:30.730 --> 00:11:34.669 Vietnam, but he carried it with him. He suffered 00:11:34.669 --> 00:11:39.110 multiple gunshot wounds. He suffered the long 00:11:39.110 --> 00:11:42.090 -term effects of Agent Orange exposure. I know 00:11:42.090 --> 00:11:44.950 a lot of us have heard about or read about Agent 00:11:44.950 --> 00:11:50.169 Orange. And I found myself thinking a lot about 00:11:50.169 --> 00:11:53.370 what Vietnam must have looked like through my 00:11:53.370 --> 00:11:56.990 dad's eyes. You know, what kind of country was 00:11:56.990 --> 00:12:01.269 it back then? What did it feel like for him back 00:12:01.269 --> 00:12:05.629 then to be here? Because for him, Vietnam wasn't 00:12:05.629 --> 00:12:10.190 a destination like it is for me. It was a battlefield 00:12:10.190 --> 00:12:14.429 for him. And so I had the potential to experience 00:12:14.429 --> 00:12:17.929 Vietnam in a completely different way, from a 00:12:17.929 --> 00:12:21.460 totally different perspective. You know, that's 00:12:21.460 --> 00:12:23.559 when I started digging a little deeper into the 00:12:23.559 --> 00:12:27.519 history of this country and learning about the 00:12:27.519 --> 00:12:31.820 resilience of its people, about their ingenuity, 00:12:32.259 --> 00:12:35.379 you know, the way they've rebuilt and evolved 00:12:35.379 --> 00:12:39.820 over time and have thrived after everything is 00:12:39.820 --> 00:12:45.039 endured since the Vietnam War. So, when you look 00:12:45.039 --> 00:12:48.860 at Vietnam today, it really is remarkable. how 00:12:48.860 --> 00:12:53.000 they have developed and built up their infrastructure, 00:12:53.840 --> 00:12:58.799 just the energy here, the pace of the growth 00:12:58.799 --> 00:13:02.220 that they've had, and also the livability of 00:13:02.220 --> 00:13:07.279 Vietnam. Because now this is one of the most 00:13:07.279 --> 00:13:11.159 dynamic and rapidly developing countries in Southeast 00:13:11.159 --> 00:13:15.179 Asia, and it's become a premier destination for 00:13:15.179 --> 00:13:19.350 travelers all over the world. And this city that 00:13:19.350 --> 00:13:21.610 I'm staying in, Ho Chi Minh City in particular, 00:13:22.289 --> 00:13:26.289 is aggressively positioning itself as the future 00:13:26.289 --> 00:13:30.389 hub for Vietnam's emerging international financial 00:13:30.389 --> 00:13:35.350 center. And so it is really a remarkable thing 00:13:35.350 --> 00:13:38.029 to see, because if you think about other parts 00:13:38.029 --> 00:13:44.169 of the world, including back home, America, we're 00:13:44.169 --> 00:13:47.490 dealing with all sorts of stuff like division, 00:13:48.610 --> 00:13:51.210 instability. It feels like we're taking a step 00:13:51.210 --> 00:13:55.129 back in a lot of different ways. And so while 00:13:55.129 --> 00:13:57.690 all of that is going on, you got countries in 00:13:57.690 --> 00:14:00.789 Southeast Asia, even parts of Africa that I've 00:14:00.789 --> 00:14:04.909 been reading about that have been quietly leveling 00:14:04.909 --> 00:14:10.070 up and improving their infrastructure, their 00:14:10.070 --> 00:14:15.509 technology, integrating AI into their technology. 00:14:16.270 --> 00:14:19.149 having all types of land development, making 00:14:19.149 --> 00:14:23.809 real strategic movement forward. And so they're 00:14:23.809 --> 00:14:27.289 not just participating in a global economy. They're 00:14:27.289 --> 00:14:30.529 really positioning themselves to compete. So 00:14:30.529 --> 00:14:33.889 while other countries like the U .S. are getting 00:14:33.889 --> 00:14:37.350 left behind, you know, we're seeing other countries 00:14:37.350 --> 00:14:41.590 sort of thrive. Okay? And so that contrast I 00:14:41.590 --> 00:14:44.920 spoke about early between how my dad experience 00:14:44.920 --> 00:14:49.080 Vietnam and how I'm experiencing Vietnam, that 00:14:49.080 --> 00:14:52.659 kind of stayed with me. Because, you know, if 00:14:52.659 --> 00:14:55.019 you think about it, here I am, I'm the son of 00:14:55.019 --> 00:14:59.059 a Vietnam War veteran. You know, I'm standing 00:14:59.059 --> 00:15:01.759 in a position to experience Saigon, or Ho Chi 00:15:01.759 --> 00:15:04.860 Minh City is what it's now called, not from a 00:15:04.860 --> 00:15:09.700 place of it being an enemy territory, but as 00:15:09.700 --> 00:15:14.549 a place to live, my home, a place to explore 00:15:14.549 --> 00:15:19.009 and learn from. And so that shift in perspective, 00:15:19.009 --> 00:15:20.970 it kind of means something to me. It kind of 00:15:20.970 --> 00:15:24.169 stuck with me a bit. And so like I said, that's 00:15:24.169 --> 00:15:27.809 when Vietnam stopped being just an option for 00:15:27.809 --> 00:15:31.629 me and it started to feel like more of an assignment, 00:15:31.970 --> 00:15:34.909 so to speak. So I'm gonna give you a little bit 00:15:34.909 --> 00:15:38.009 more context to this because there were some 00:15:38.009 --> 00:15:42.399 other factors about Vietnam that made me take 00:15:42.399 --> 00:15:44.679 a different look at it and make a decision to 00:15:44.679 --> 00:15:48.580 come here. The Vietnam of today is not the Vietnam 00:15:48.580 --> 00:15:52.980 from the 70s that we read about for many years. 00:15:54.000 --> 00:15:56.919 And a lot of times you hear people refer to countries 00:15:56.919 --> 00:16:02.340 like Vietnam as a third world country. And I 00:16:02.340 --> 00:16:06.039 want to clarify what that actually means, because 00:16:06.039 --> 00:16:08.620 when people say third world country, what they 00:16:08.620 --> 00:16:12.940 were technically referring to was a Cold War 00:16:12.940 --> 00:16:14.960 classification system. That's where all that 00:16:14.960 --> 00:16:18.480 came from. The first world, second world, third 00:16:18.480 --> 00:16:25.679 world classifications. It was based on political 00:16:25.679 --> 00:16:29.639 assignment and political alignment. It necessarily 00:16:29.639 --> 00:16:34.240 didn't talk about development. But if you think 00:16:34.240 --> 00:16:37.460 about it over time, that third world country 00:16:37.460 --> 00:16:40.480 moniker, it started to take on a negative connotation. 00:16:40.759 --> 00:16:43.879 for a lot of countries and it implied things 00:16:43.879 --> 00:16:47.080 that weren't necessarily true like poverty and 00:16:47.080 --> 00:16:52.000 lack of progress or just general underdevelopment. 00:16:52.720 --> 00:16:56.700 And so that type of perception has sort of persisted 00:16:56.700 --> 00:16:58.980 over the decades all the way up until today. 00:17:00.120 --> 00:17:02.600 And what I want the listeners to understand is 00:17:02.600 --> 00:17:05.980 that calling a country a third world country 00:17:05.980 --> 00:17:08.619 really is an outdated term that we shouldn't 00:17:08.619 --> 00:17:12.619 use anymore. And it's really no different than 00:17:12.619 --> 00:17:17.140 referring to someone as handicapped or a retard. 00:17:17.460 --> 00:17:21.819 It's just outdated. And it can be really offensive 00:17:21.819 --> 00:17:24.740 to a lot of people. And it's just not part of 00:17:24.740 --> 00:17:28.940 the modern lexicon that we use today. Because 00:17:28.940 --> 00:17:31.339 Vietnam has done a lot of hard work in terms 00:17:31.339 --> 00:17:35.400 of elevating its position, not just regionally, 00:17:35.420 --> 00:17:38.599 but on a global stage. especially in areas like 00:17:38.599 --> 00:17:42.380 tourism and business, international interests. 00:17:42.839 --> 00:17:47.440 So it would be more accurate to refer to it as 00:17:47.440 --> 00:17:51.180 an emerging economy. Or you can also say something 00:17:51.180 --> 00:17:58.279 like a rapidly developing nation. So just something 00:17:58.279 --> 00:18:01.160 for you to think about and just a little education 00:18:01.160 --> 00:18:03.839 there in terms of using the proper terminology 00:18:03.839 --> 00:18:07.619 when you're referencing countries that are rapidly 00:18:07.619 --> 00:18:12.259 developing. Okay, so if you have been on YouTube 00:18:12.259 --> 00:18:16.180 at any point in the last year or so, you probably 00:18:16.180 --> 00:18:20.920 have seen a wave of people from all over the 00:18:20.920 --> 00:18:24.160 world relocating to a host of other countries 00:18:24.160 --> 00:18:28.299 like Ghana, South Africa, Dominican Republic 00:18:28.299 --> 00:18:33.200 is a popular one, Thailand, Costa Rica, Portugal, 00:18:33.319 --> 00:18:35.059 there's a bunch of countries that people are 00:18:35.059 --> 00:18:39.730 relocating to. And all these places, of course, 00:18:39.769 --> 00:18:41.890 have their own unique appeal. There's no doubt 00:18:41.890 --> 00:18:46.269 about that. But one of the real hidden gems over 00:18:46.269 --> 00:18:50.309 the past decade that a lot of people have overlooked 00:18:50.309 --> 00:18:55.329 or discounted has been Vietnam. And that's largely 00:18:55.329 --> 00:18:59.990 due to the ignorance and the perception of it 00:18:59.990 --> 00:19:03.750 being a third world country. But if you were 00:19:03.750 --> 00:19:06.640 to just... Go to any search engine and just type 00:19:06.640 --> 00:19:11.819 in relocate to Vietnam. You will find hundreds 00:19:11.819 --> 00:19:16.420 and hundreds of videos with expats and digital 00:19:16.420 --> 00:19:19.319 nomads and professionals, people like myself 00:19:19.319 --> 00:19:22.900 who have left the US and other countries like 00:19:22.900 --> 00:19:27.980 Canada, UK, and they built a life here in Southeast 00:19:27.980 --> 00:19:32.619 Asia. So I'm going to paint a picture for you. 00:19:35.029 --> 00:19:39.309 Vietnam is a coastal country. Of course, it's 00:19:39.309 --> 00:19:42.910 in the Southeast Asia region. It borders China 00:19:42.910 --> 00:19:47.450 to the north. And on the west, there's Laos and 00:19:47.450 --> 00:19:51.930 Cambodia. And so this country is actually a very 00:19:51.930 --> 00:19:55.130 large country. It stretches along the South China 00:19:55.130 --> 00:19:59.369 Sea. And geographically, it's very long and narrow, 00:19:59.490 --> 00:20:04.279 kind of like Chile, but it's much wider. And 00:20:04.279 --> 00:20:07.619 it runs a little over 1 ,000 miles from north 00:20:07.619 --> 00:20:11.220 to south. So like I said, it's very long. And 00:20:11.220 --> 00:20:14.400 so that means that the climate in Vietnam actually 00:20:14.400 --> 00:20:17.599 varies a lot depending on where you're located. 00:20:18.240 --> 00:20:23.519 If you're up north in places like Hanoi, they 00:20:23.519 --> 00:20:27.359 experience a lot of cooler weather. And they 00:20:27.359 --> 00:20:29.960 have something more close to four seasons like 00:20:29.960 --> 00:20:34.349 you see in the states. But down south, where 00:20:34.349 --> 00:20:37.210 I am in Ho Chi Minh City. It pretty much stays 00:20:37.210 --> 00:20:42.049 warm, very humid, and has a tropical climate 00:20:42.049 --> 00:20:44.410 pretty much year -round. Very much like Puerto 00:20:44.410 --> 00:20:48.190 Rico. And visually this country is stunning. 00:20:48.369 --> 00:20:51.049 It's absolutely stunning. You got a lot of green 00:20:51.049 --> 00:20:54.869 mountains, lush green mountains, tons of rice 00:20:54.869 --> 00:20:59.890 fields. We have beaches here. There's a whole 00:20:59.890 --> 00:21:02.509 bunch of historic temples and other buildings. 00:21:02.839 --> 00:21:07.559 that have colonial architecture and just really 00:21:07.559 --> 00:21:09.880 beautiful landscapes. It's one of those places 00:21:09.880 --> 00:21:13.119 where everywhere you look, there's basically 00:21:13.119 --> 00:21:17.799 something to take in. But even beyond the scenery, 00:21:19.779 --> 00:21:23.299 it's the people here. Now, if you're coming from 00:21:23.299 --> 00:21:29.480 the States like I am, it's real easy to get sort 00:21:29.480 --> 00:21:35.640 of jaded. have this attitude or tension that's 00:21:35.640 --> 00:21:38.880 already built up just because of your everyday 00:21:38.880 --> 00:21:43.000 negative interactions that you have. But here 00:21:43.000 --> 00:21:47.259 it's completely different. People are warm, they're 00:21:47.259 --> 00:21:52.079 respectful, hard -working, very community -oriented. 00:21:54.500 --> 00:21:56.440 Don't get me wrong, they've got their little 00:21:56.440 --> 00:21:58.819 ways too. I'm going to talk about some of that 00:21:58.819 --> 00:22:03.559 in the next segment. Overall, the energy here 00:22:03.559 --> 00:22:08.160 is just very different. The lifestyle is very 00:22:08.160 --> 00:22:12.579 accessible. And the cost of living is affordable. 00:22:13.460 --> 00:22:16.319 The food is affordable. The food is world class. 00:22:16.759 --> 00:22:18.400 I'm talking about some of the best street food 00:22:18.400 --> 00:22:22.180 that you can find anywhere. The culture here 00:22:22.180 --> 00:22:24.700 is very welcoming to foreigners. I was talking 00:22:24.700 --> 00:22:29.130 about this with our engineer earlier today. You 00:22:29.130 --> 00:22:30.970 would think that with everything that happened 00:22:30.970 --> 00:22:33.490 between the U .S. and Vietnam, they wouldn't 00:22:33.490 --> 00:22:36.630 be really welcoming to Americans, especially, 00:22:36.890 --> 00:22:42.269 and other foreigners, but very warm people. And 00:22:42.269 --> 00:22:44.029 that's one of the things that really stood out 00:22:44.029 --> 00:22:48.750 to me since being here, is how warm people are. 00:22:49.210 --> 00:22:52.650 But Vietnam still is very much rooted in its 00:22:52.650 --> 00:22:54.569 own identity, even though it's very welcoming 00:22:54.569 --> 00:22:56.730 to foreigners. So I've taken note of that as 00:22:56.730 --> 00:23:00.779 well. Another thing that stood out to me about 00:23:00.779 --> 00:23:04.440 Vietnam is that they place a very high premium 00:23:04.440 --> 00:23:10.039 on education. The Vietnamese do not play when 00:23:10.039 --> 00:23:12.700 it comes to their children's education, and I'm 00:23:12.700 --> 00:23:16.579 just going to give you a glimpse of what the 00:23:16.579 --> 00:23:20.500 typical day for an average Vietnamese student 00:23:20.500 --> 00:23:22.799 looks like. I want you to sort of compare it 00:23:22.799 --> 00:23:26.640 with wherever you are in the world. Okay, so 00:23:26.640 --> 00:23:30.980 the average student here in Vietnam, they're 00:23:30.980 --> 00:23:33.180 already up at about five or six o 'clock in the 00:23:33.180 --> 00:23:39.380 morning, okay? They're at school by 730, and 00:23:39.380 --> 00:23:43.940 they are in class all day through mid -afternoon, 00:23:43.960 --> 00:23:47.740 probably like 3, 30, 4 o 'clock in most cases. 00:23:48.559 --> 00:23:52.640 After school, they go home, eat, maybe relax 00:23:52.640 --> 00:23:55.240 for a little bit, and then they're right back 00:23:55.240 --> 00:23:59.680 out the door, and they're from like 5 30 all 00:23:59.680 --> 00:24:03.619 the way up to 8 30 sometimes later in additional 00:24:03.619 --> 00:24:09.099 classes at language centers To learn English 00:24:09.099 --> 00:24:11.599 primary primarily, but they're also studying 00:24:11.599 --> 00:24:15.200 different languages like Mandarin or French Or 00:24:15.200 --> 00:24:18.019 they may be enrolled in some type of extracurricular 00:24:18.019 --> 00:24:21.259 STEM programs learning about science technology 00:24:21.259 --> 00:24:24.740 engineering mathematics or learning robotics 00:24:24.740 --> 00:24:28.420 or other advanced subjects And if that's not 00:24:28.420 --> 00:24:31.339 enough, some of them, actually a lot of them 00:24:31.339 --> 00:24:36.119 are in class on Saturdays and Sundays also. So 00:24:36.119 --> 00:24:39.480 when I say there's an emphasis on education, 00:24:40.200 --> 00:24:44.759 I mean it's serious. The students here are very 00:24:44.759 --> 00:24:48.559 high performing, they're very high expectations 00:24:48.559 --> 00:24:51.920 placed on them, and there's a strong push, a 00:24:51.920 --> 00:24:56.700 very strong push toward multilingual fluency. 00:24:57.230 --> 00:25:01.109 and especially in English. And that's where something 00:25:01.109 --> 00:25:06.130 called the, they call it the IELTS. This I -E 00:25:06.130 --> 00:25:09.690 -L -T -S, it stands for International English 00:25:09.690 --> 00:25:12.970 Language Testing System. It's one of those standard 00:25:12.970 --> 00:25:17.650 exams that's used not just here in Vietnam, but 00:25:17.650 --> 00:25:20.690 around the world to assess your English proficiency. 00:25:21.710 --> 00:25:26.500 So this is particularly important for Vietnamese 00:25:26.500 --> 00:25:29.579 students who want to study abroad, who want to 00:25:29.579 --> 00:25:33.039 work for international companies, or just have 00:25:33.039 --> 00:25:36.940 access to higher level opportunities. So here 00:25:36.940 --> 00:25:41.700 in Vietnam, a strong IELTS test score can literally 00:25:41.700 --> 00:25:45.599 open doors for them to better schools, better 00:25:45.599 --> 00:25:50.619 jobs, greater access to the global economy at 00:25:50.619 --> 00:25:54.059 large. So naturally, like I said, students here 00:25:54.059 --> 00:25:58.670 are very engaged, very focused, very ambitious. 00:26:00.670 --> 00:26:02.890 And honestly, it's very refreshing to see because 00:26:02.890 --> 00:26:05.150 like I said, in the States you just don't see 00:26:05.150 --> 00:26:10.569 this, especially when you compare it to the attitudes 00:26:10.569 --> 00:26:14.029 that a lot of Americans have toward education. 00:26:14.369 --> 00:26:17.849 A lot of people are just not, they're not thinking 00:26:17.849 --> 00:26:21.230 about college or post -secondary education at 00:26:21.230 --> 00:26:24.529 all, you know. And so just seeing the attitude 00:26:24.529 --> 00:26:27.329 about education is something that naturally led 00:26:27.329 --> 00:26:31.130 me to this next chapter of my life. Stepping 00:26:31.130 --> 00:26:35.369 into a new role, just growing myself, expanding, 00:26:36.930 --> 00:26:40.069 getting myself in uncomfortable positions on 00:26:40.069 --> 00:26:42.470 purpose, stepping outside of my comfort zone, 00:26:42.930 --> 00:26:45.930 trying different things. And I'm gonna talk about 00:26:45.930 --> 00:26:48.990 that when we come back from the commercial break, 00:26:49.009 --> 00:26:50.750 but right now we're gonna take a quick break. 00:26:50.960 --> 00:26:52.960 But don't go anywhere, because when we return, 00:26:53.079 --> 00:26:56.019 we're going to talk about my next chapter. And 00:26:56.019 --> 00:26:59.000 I'm going to share some of my real -life, unfiltered 00:26:59.000 --> 00:27:02.039 experiences here since I relocated to Vietnam. 00:27:02.640 --> 00:27:06.339 So stay tuned. We'll be right back. That's right 00:27:06.339 --> 00:27:09.359 at 10 p .m. Every second Wednesday on artistsfirst 00:27:09.359 --> 00:27:12.960 .com It's the worldwide internet show the GL 00:27:12.960 --> 00:27:16.220 Henderson Radio Hour Tune in to hear a special 00:27:16.220 --> 00:27:18.880 guest from professionals live topics and get 00:27:18.880 --> 00:27:21.660 a blast from the past with musical legends like 00:27:21.660 --> 00:27:38.839 Lisa Lisa The Temptations Manhattan's Shanice. 00:27:39.759 --> 00:27:49.200 Shirley Murdoch. Dana Dane. To make it interesting, 00:27:49.420 --> 00:27:57.180 it's me, Dana Dane. Tina Marie Edmore. Tune in 00:27:57.180 --> 00:28:00.880 to the GL Henderson Radio Hour, the king of relationship 00:28:00.880 --> 00:28:03.990 drama fiction. every second Wednesday at 10 p 00:28:03.990 --> 00:28:07.710 .m. Eastern Standard Time on artistfirst .com. 00:28:09.109 --> 00:28:12.109 Looking for your next car? Amazon Autos has you 00:28:12.109 --> 00:28:14.750 covered. With just a few clicks, you can shop 00:28:14.750 --> 00:28:17.589 a wide selection of new vehicles, compare prices, 00:28:18.009 --> 00:28:20.569 read reviews, and even arrange pickup or delivery, 00:28:20.809 --> 00:28:23.589 just like ordering anything else on Amazon. It's 00:28:23.589 --> 00:28:26.289 the future of car buying, simple, transparent, 00:28:26.529 --> 00:28:29.869 and all online. Backed by Amazon's trusted network 00:28:29.869 --> 00:28:32.299 and partnering with local dealerships, Amazon 00:28:32.299 --> 00:28:35.539 Autos is redefining how we shop for cars. Visit 00:28:35.539 --> 00:28:38.579 amazon .com forward slash autos and drive into 00:28:38.579 --> 00:28:42.460 the future today. Welcome to another broadcast 00:28:42.460 --> 00:28:44.640 of Spiritual Concerns, the Deborah Ruffini show 00:28:44.640 --> 00:28:47.380 on Artists First Radio Network. We're live from 00:28:47.380 --> 00:28:50.099 England on Saturdays and Sundays, 3pm New York, 00:28:50.259 --> 00:28:53.359 8pm London. All past shows or podcasts, find 00:28:53.359 --> 00:28:56.059 them at artistsfirst .com. I'll be your host 00:28:56.059 --> 00:28:58.200 where issues relating to spiritual matters of 00:28:58.200 --> 00:29:00.740 concern will be largely examined and discussed. 00:29:01.119 --> 00:29:25.329 Enjoy the show. If you're just joining us, we've 00:29:25.329 --> 00:29:27.589 been talking about my recent move to Vietnam, 00:29:28.470 --> 00:29:31.329 why I chose to come here, and what I've observed 00:29:31.329 --> 00:29:35.190 so far, and how this experience is already stretching 00:29:35.190 --> 00:29:40.390 me in ways that I didn't fully expect. So before 00:29:40.390 --> 00:29:43.029 the break, we were talking about culture, the 00:29:43.029 --> 00:29:46.470 lifestyle here, and the strong emphasis on education. 00:29:46.569 --> 00:29:50.829 So we're going to pick right up there. You know, 00:29:50.849 --> 00:29:54.750 when I began my doctoral studies near, oh my 00:29:54.750 --> 00:29:57.569 God, it's almost been 10 years ago, but when 00:29:57.569 --> 00:30:00.930 I started my doctoral studies, my ambition at 00:30:00.930 --> 00:30:05.569 the time wasn't to be a professor. I knew that 00:30:05.569 --> 00:30:08.690 was a clear pathway, you know, if that was something 00:30:08.690 --> 00:30:12.529 that I aspired to become, but it wasn't what 00:30:12.529 --> 00:30:17.930 I set my sights on. My ambition was to climb 00:30:17.930 --> 00:30:21.069 the corporate ladder. and travel and make six 00:30:21.069 --> 00:30:24.789 figures and all of that stuff. What I didn't 00:30:24.789 --> 00:30:29.509 know at the time was that getting all of that, 00:30:29.910 --> 00:30:32.569 attaining those aspirations and all that stuff 00:30:32.569 --> 00:30:35.369 I thought I want, it was only gonna bring me 00:30:35.369 --> 00:30:38.410 fleeting happiness. And if you follow the show, 00:30:38.529 --> 00:30:41.390 I've already touched on this in other episodes, 00:30:42.109 --> 00:30:46.079 but when you're a happiness or... your sense 00:30:46.079 --> 00:30:48.900 of identity and security are hinged upon things 00:30:48.900 --> 00:30:55.180 like titles and salary, position, power, access, 00:30:55.680 --> 00:30:58.680 the number of people you manage or the number 00:30:58.680 --> 00:31:04.859 of people you're in charge of. If your security 00:31:04.859 --> 00:31:07.000 and your identity is hinged on stuff like that, 00:31:07.160 --> 00:31:11.660 you're gonna get caught in this cycle of never 00:31:11.660 --> 00:31:16.119 having enough. no amount of money or prestige 00:31:16.119 --> 00:31:20.759 is gonna make you feel complete or whole. Because 00:31:20.759 --> 00:31:23.059 you're always gonna be comparing yourself against 00:31:23.059 --> 00:31:25.740 your contemporaries or trying to keep up with 00:31:25.740 --> 00:31:28.740 the latest car or phone or the newest this or 00:31:28.740 --> 00:31:32.099 that. And not to mention the level of stress 00:31:32.099 --> 00:31:35.240 and the level of commitment that come with having 00:31:35.240 --> 00:31:38.539 those types of leadership positions. And then 00:31:38.539 --> 00:31:42.089 also when you're at that level, you're... constantly 00:31:42.089 --> 00:31:46.250 in what I call like a heightened state of awareness. 00:31:46.970 --> 00:31:49.269 It's like you're hyper vigilant because there's 00:31:49.269 --> 00:31:52.430 always someone gunning for your position, right? 00:31:52.849 --> 00:31:56.650 So it's just a lot that comes with that level 00:31:56.650 --> 00:32:01.410 of responsibility. And those things that I just 00:32:01.410 --> 00:32:06.910 mentioned, those played a major... factor, or 00:32:06.910 --> 00:32:09.970 it was a major factor in why I decided to walk 00:32:09.970 --> 00:32:12.950 away from all of that. I walked away from a thriving 00:32:12.950 --> 00:32:17.430 career. I retired early. Just because I was just 00:32:17.430 --> 00:32:19.549 done with all of that. None of that stuff was 00:32:19.549 --> 00:32:23.309 making me happy. You know, God willing, I'll 00:32:23.309 --> 00:32:28.990 be turning 48 this October. So I've spent enough 00:32:28.990 --> 00:32:32.490 of my life chasing all the glittery things, all 00:32:32.490 --> 00:32:35.539 the things I thought I wanted. What I'm chasing 00:32:35.539 --> 00:32:40.019 now is purpose and impact. I don't measure my 00:32:40.019 --> 00:32:43.960 life anymore by my salary, how much money I make, 00:32:43.980 --> 00:32:46.640 how many promotions I can get. What I measure 00:32:46.640 --> 00:32:52.680 my life on now is whose lives have I improved? 00:32:53.980 --> 00:32:56.819 I talked about that in other episodes. Whose 00:32:56.819 --> 00:32:59.779 lives have I improved? In what way did I make 00:32:59.779 --> 00:33:03.440 a difference in someone's life today? Was I kind 00:33:03.440 --> 00:33:07.240 to people today? Did I extend the same level 00:33:07.240 --> 00:33:09.839 of grace to others that I would want extended 00:33:09.839 --> 00:33:12.960 to me? Who did I encourage today? You know, that 00:33:12.960 --> 00:33:17.259 type of thing. I've been served and catered to 00:33:17.259 --> 00:33:20.680 enough in my life, but I feel like now it's time 00:33:20.680 --> 00:33:24.160 for me to serve others. Serve others with my 00:33:24.160 --> 00:33:29.400 gift, my time, my energy, my talents. And that 00:33:29.400 --> 00:33:31.180 brings me back to something I mentioned earlier. 00:33:31.810 --> 00:33:35.509 when I talked about being a professor. Like I 00:33:35.509 --> 00:33:40.009 said, that was never really my ambition. But 00:33:40.009 --> 00:33:42.109 it's always something I kept in my back pocket 00:33:42.109 --> 00:33:47.670 as an option if the timing was right. So, you 00:33:47.670 --> 00:33:51.589 know, in doing my research and figuring out which 00:33:51.589 --> 00:33:55.869 country would be a best fit, I discovered that 00:33:55.869 --> 00:33:59.910 Vietnam, and not just Vietnam, a lot of countries 00:33:59.910 --> 00:34:04.819 in Southeast Asia, have a huge demand for teachers 00:34:04.819 --> 00:34:08.480 who are native English speakers or non -native 00:34:08.480 --> 00:34:14.780 English speakers who are fluent. So, of course, 00:34:15.340 --> 00:34:17.119 you're gonna have additional requirements in 00:34:17.119 --> 00:34:20.539 terms of education and backgrounds, but there 00:34:20.539 --> 00:34:24.920 is a huge demand for teachers in all types of 00:34:24.920 --> 00:34:29.400 subjects. STEM, science, technology, engineering, 00:34:29.599 --> 00:34:34.400 mathematics, English. literature, robotics, coding, 00:34:36.019 --> 00:34:38.719 what's another one, public speaking, all types 00:34:38.719 --> 00:34:41.840 of courses and across all different types of 00:34:41.840 --> 00:34:44.760 levels from beginner all the way through intermediate 00:34:44.760 --> 00:34:49.480 and advanced. And also different types of schools, 00:34:49.699 --> 00:34:53.579 public schools, private schools, language centers, 00:34:54.519 --> 00:34:58.019 universities, international schools. And even 00:34:58.019 --> 00:35:02.130 if you're not too keen on teaching, They're also 00:35:02.130 --> 00:35:06.030 looking for curriculum developers and education 00:35:06.030 --> 00:35:09.670 consultants. So there are a lot of opportunities 00:35:09.670 --> 00:35:13.570 out here. And what I really love about these 00:35:13.570 --> 00:35:16.789 types of opportunities is that it opens doors 00:35:16.789 --> 00:35:22.289 for a more immersive experience in a new country 00:35:22.289 --> 00:35:25.329 than you would have if you just came here as 00:35:25.329 --> 00:35:30.789 a tourist. You know, just coming here as a tourist, 00:35:30.909 --> 00:35:33.909 seeing the sights, taking the pictures, enjoying 00:35:33.909 --> 00:35:36.949 the food, and doing the do -wop -wop that every 00:35:36.949 --> 00:35:41.269 other tourist does. But when you're invested 00:35:41.269 --> 00:35:46.090 in a country just beyond being a tourist, and 00:35:46.090 --> 00:35:48.050 you're tied in with the business community, and 00:35:48.050 --> 00:35:53.070 you're seeking to contribute to their economy 00:35:53.070 --> 00:35:55.769 and their strategic objectives, then you're going 00:35:55.769 --> 00:36:00.769 to see a different level of treatment. and respect. 00:36:01.969 --> 00:36:05.570 And that's when you become eligible for business 00:36:05.570 --> 00:36:09.329 visas and, you know, a residency status and just 00:36:09.329 --> 00:36:12.170 other perks that you have when you have that 00:36:12.170 --> 00:36:18.349 level of participation and connection. So, Vietnam 00:36:18.349 --> 00:36:22.929 just isn't casually interested in English. They 00:36:22.929 --> 00:36:27.050 are strategically investing in making sure that 00:36:27.239 --> 00:36:30.019 the students that are coming out of the public 00:36:30.019 --> 00:36:32.860 schools and getting prepared for college are 00:36:32.860 --> 00:36:37.260 completely fluent in English. It's a part of 00:36:37.260 --> 00:36:41.760 their national education strategy. So Vietnam 00:36:41.760 --> 00:36:46.019 is quickly moving toward making English a second 00:36:46.019 --> 00:36:49.760 language across the country, not just a foreign 00:36:49.760 --> 00:36:51.880 language that you sort of learn on the side. 00:36:52.920 --> 00:36:56.639 And you know, in fact, Starting last year in 00:36:56.639 --> 00:37:00.139 2025, they've already started requiring English 00:37:00.139 --> 00:37:04.639 to be taught from first grade all the way up. 00:37:05.480 --> 00:37:08.579 And in some provinces, they're even introducing 00:37:08.579 --> 00:37:12.360 English at the preschool level. So again, they're 00:37:12.360 --> 00:37:16.159 very strategic about this. They've set long -term 00:37:16.159 --> 00:37:20.360 goals all the way through 2035. They're taking 00:37:20.360 --> 00:37:23.179 up large -scale teacher training initiatives. 00:37:23.480 --> 00:37:27.019 that are happening right now. There are thousands 00:37:27.019 --> 00:37:28.960 of new English teachers that are being developed 00:37:28.960 --> 00:37:31.960 right now. Hundreds of thousands of teachers 00:37:31.960 --> 00:37:35.079 are being retrained. I mentioned this earlier, 00:37:35.280 --> 00:37:39.619 they are integrating AI into their digital tools. 00:37:40.260 --> 00:37:43.780 And they're creating all types of communication 00:37:43.780 --> 00:37:47.400 -based learning. So this isn't random, this is 00:37:47.400 --> 00:37:50.460 very intentional on their part. Because they 00:37:50.460 --> 00:37:54.480 understand something very clearly about language 00:37:54.480 --> 00:38:00.719 and that it creates access. Access to global 00:38:00.719 --> 00:38:05.039 business, access to education, access to opportunities, 00:38:05.980 --> 00:38:11.260 and like I said, that's where exams like the 00:38:11.260 --> 00:38:15.159 IELTS come into play, the I -E -L -T -S, because 00:38:15.159 --> 00:38:19.400 a strong English proficiency and a strong test 00:38:19.400 --> 00:38:23.170 score can literally open doors for these students 00:38:23.170 --> 00:38:27.050 here. And so I mentioned how seriously they take 00:38:27.050 --> 00:38:29.889 their education and all that type of stuff. It 00:38:29.889 --> 00:38:33.050 all makes sense for me. And being in this type 00:38:33.050 --> 00:38:36.050 of environment, seeing how passionate they are 00:38:36.050 --> 00:38:38.989 about education, it sort of drew me in and just 00:38:38.989 --> 00:38:41.610 made me want to be a part of it. Because now 00:38:41.610 --> 00:38:46.070 I'm not just observing Vietnam's growth. I'm 00:38:46.070 --> 00:38:48.309 actually contributing to it or in a position 00:38:48.309 --> 00:38:51.820 to contribute to it. And at the same time, I'm 00:38:51.820 --> 00:38:56.400 growing, too. You know, for me, stepping into 00:38:56.400 --> 00:39:00.500 this space, into academia, leaning into not just 00:39:00.500 --> 00:39:05.159 being a global communicator, but a global educator. 00:39:06.119 --> 00:39:10.860 All this is not random. It's strategic. It's 00:39:10.860 --> 00:39:14.139 alignment. It's purposeful. And honestly, it 00:39:14.139 --> 00:39:16.719 feels like I'm exactly where I'm supposed to 00:39:16.719 --> 00:39:21.579 be in my life right now. And so all of that sounds 00:39:21.579 --> 00:39:27.219 good on paper, but actually living here day to 00:39:27.219 --> 00:39:30.480 day is a completely different conversation. I'm 00:39:30.480 --> 00:39:35.619 gonna talk about that for a little bit. Okay, 00:39:35.659 --> 00:39:40.420 so first of all, the flight over here will completely 00:39:40.420 --> 00:39:45.920 wear you out. It's about a 20 -hour flight. I'm 00:39:45.920 --> 00:39:48.420 no stranger to a long flight. I'm used to... 00:39:48.269 --> 00:39:51.889 8 and 12 hour flights back and forth from Saudi 00:39:51.889 --> 00:39:55.070 to the states but you know being on a plane for 00:39:55.070 --> 00:39:59.389 basically an entire day almost 24 hours is something 00:39:59.389 --> 00:40:02.329 completely different and it requires a certain 00:40:02.329 --> 00:40:08.230 amount of stamina that's all I can say. I upgraded 00:40:08.230 --> 00:40:11.789 my seat to something called Comfort Plus just 00:40:11.789 --> 00:40:15.030 because I want an extra leg room and and just 00:40:15.030 --> 00:40:17.550 a more comfortable ride, but it just, it wasn't 00:40:17.550 --> 00:40:22.409 comfortable enough for us. If I'm ever flying 00:40:22.409 --> 00:40:26.010 for that long again, I'm just gonna pay for business 00:40:26.010 --> 00:40:28.889 class, and I suggest you do the same if you're 00:40:28.889 --> 00:40:30.730 gonna take a flight that's more than 10 hours 00:40:30.730 --> 00:40:35.889 long. Okay, and then there's the immigration 00:40:35.889 --> 00:40:39.809 line once you actually get off the plane. I had 00:40:39.809 --> 00:40:41.809 already done my research on this, and I knew 00:40:41.809 --> 00:40:44.210 it was gonna take a while in the immigration 00:40:44.210 --> 00:40:47.190 line. Luckily, we only had to wait an hour, about 00:40:47.190 --> 00:40:51.889 an hour. And I thought that was pretty good because 00:40:51.889 --> 00:40:54.909 from the research that I've done, the wait time 00:40:54.909 --> 00:40:58.010 averages around two to three hours sometimes. 00:40:58.630 --> 00:41:03.050 So I thought an hour was pretty good. Now, as 00:41:03.050 --> 00:41:05.510 soon as you get through the immigration and get 00:41:05.510 --> 00:41:08.349 your visa stamped and all of that, and you actually 00:41:08.349 --> 00:41:12.630 exit the airport, This is where you're going 00:41:12.630 --> 00:41:17.789 to be bombarded with a flood of taxi drivers. 00:41:17.949 --> 00:41:20.090 They're all going to be trying to help you with 00:41:20.090 --> 00:41:22.590 your luggage and take you to your hotel or your 00:41:22.590 --> 00:41:25.389 Airbnb or wherever it is you're staying. And 00:41:25.389 --> 00:41:30.250 it can be very, very overwhelming. And I'm already 00:41:30.250 --> 00:41:32.369 kind of used to this because it's kind of the 00:41:32.369 --> 00:41:34.989 same way at the International Airport in Riyadh, 00:41:35.230 --> 00:41:40.900 but here it's way more intense. And here's the 00:41:40.900 --> 00:41:43.460 thing, you've got to be really careful because 00:41:43.460 --> 00:41:47.519 not all these taxi drivers are well -meaning. 00:41:48.739 --> 00:41:51.159 You know, some of them are looking to take advantage 00:41:51.159 --> 00:41:54.480 of travelers and tourists who just don't know 00:41:54.480 --> 00:41:57.340 any better and who don't know the lay of the 00:41:57.340 --> 00:42:00.780 land yet. And you can easily find yourself caught 00:42:00.780 --> 00:42:05.659 up with a scam. And thankfully, that wasn't our 00:42:05.659 --> 00:42:09.539 experience. But I will tell you that I was... 00:42:09.530 --> 00:42:12.989 not really in a good head space by the time we 00:42:12.989 --> 00:42:16.210 arrived to Saigon. Like I said, the flight took 00:42:16.210 --> 00:42:19.869 a lot out of me. I didn't sleep very well. The 00:42:19.869 --> 00:42:23.050 seats were not very comfortable despite being 00:42:23.050 --> 00:42:28.349 comfort plus or whatever that means. Now, one 00:42:28.349 --> 00:42:30.489 thing about these international flights is they 00:42:30.489 --> 00:42:33.289 will feed you. They will feed the hell out of 00:42:33.289 --> 00:42:36.590 you. By the time I got off the plane, I was bloated. 00:42:38.300 --> 00:42:42.079 dehydrated. I felt jet lagged. I was irritable. 00:42:42.159 --> 00:42:45.500 I needed a shower. I was feeling kind of, you 00:42:45.500 --> 00:42:48.340 know, mentally lethargic. And I just felt out 00:42:48.340 --> 00:42:52.619 of sorts. So having all of that going on and 00:42:52.619 --> 00:42:55.480 then trying to navigate a language barrier right 00:42:55.480 --> 00:42:59.260 out the gate and find a taxi driver that wasn't 00:42:59.260 --> 00:43:02.679 a scam artist, make sure we had the right address. 00:43:03.019 --> 00:43:05.659 Addresses in Vietnam are very confusing, by the 00:43:05.659 --> 00:43:08.869 way. But yeah making sure we had the right address 00:43:08.869 --> 00:43:11.809 Not get caught up in the skin all that was just 00:43:11.809 --> 00:43:15.269 a lot coming right off the plane And I'm almost 00:43:15.269 --> 00:43:20.670 ashamed to admit this But I almost had like a 00:43:20.670 --> 00:43:24.269 mini breakdown a mini nervous breakdown in the 00:43:24.269 --> 00:43:28.570 parking lot Outside of the the airport because 00:43:28.570 --> 00:43:31.829 I couldn't order a taxi. I ordered like maybe 00:43:31.829 --> 00:43:35.639 two they kept canceling They kept going to the 00:43:35.639 --> 00:43:38.840 wrong part of the airport. I couldn't explain 00:43:38.840 --> 00:43:41.679 to them how to get to where I was because I don't 00:43:41.679 --> 00:43:45.099 speak Vietnamese. They didn't speak English. 00:43:45.320 --> 00:43:50.239 So it was just a mess. And at one point, I just 00:43:50.239 --> 00:43:54.500 sat on the curb and I almost wanted to cry. That's 00:43:54.500 --> 00:43:59.900 how exhausted I was. And if I could go back, 00:44:00.440 --> 00:44:04.469 I just would have paid for express or fast -track 00:44:04.469 --> 00:44:06.690 service, whatever they call it, through immigration, 00:44:07.769 --> 00:44:10.989 which I thought I already had because we have 00:44:10.989 --> 00:44:14.590 global entry, we have TSA pre -check, we have 00:44:14.590 --> 00:44:18.130 clear, we have MX Platinum, we have all the things 00:44:18.130 --> 00:44:22.710 you need to move seamlessly through all the checkpoints 00:44:22.710 --> 00:44:26.150 and through the airport or whatever. But I definitely 00:44:26.150 --> 00:44:28.989 should have opted for a car service to our Airbnb. 00:44:29.579 --> 00:44:32.179 You know, after a trip that long, you really 00:44:32.179 --> 00:44:36.300 do need that. So I admit that's some place where 00:44:36.300 --> 00:44:40.500 I dropped the ball. And if I'm keeping it real, 00:44:40.559 --> 00:44:43.559 there's also some arrogance on my part, too, 00:44:44.139 --> 00:44:46.940 from being an addict traveler and traveling all 00:44:46.940 --> 00:44:50.000 over the world, being a former diplomat. I was 00:44:50.000 --> 00:44:51.639 sort of thinking that, you know, I didn't need 00:44:51.639 --> 00:44:53.679 nobody to hold my hand through the airports. 00:44:53.780 --> 00:44:55.679 You know, I've got this. I've done this a thousand 00:44:55.679 --> 00:44:57.860 times. You know, that type of attitude. I had 00:44:57.860 --> 00:45:03.460 that going on. There's a big difference between 00:45:03.460 --> 00:45:08.480 traveling as a diplomat and traveling as a civilian. 00:45:09.219 --> 00:45:14.940 It's night and day. I really didn't appreciate 00:45:14.940 --> 00:45:18.139 a lot of the luxuries I was afforded until I 00:45:18.139 --> 00:45:22.000 no longer had access to them. But even as a civilian, 00:45:22.099 --> 00:45:25.019 there's still ways that you can ensure that your 00:45:25.019 --> 00:45:28.619 travel is as low stress as possible. Like I said, 00:45:28.679 --> 00:45:32.829 book a car service. in advance from the airport 00:45:32.829 --> 00:45:35.590 to the hotel or wherever you're staying, especially 00:45:35.590 --> 00:45:38.070 if you're in an unfamiliar country and you don't 00:45:38.070 --> 00:45:43.369 know the language, book you a car service. If 00:45:43.369 --> 00:45:45.849 there's expedited service through immigration, 00:45:46.909 --> 00:45:51.550 take it. Just pay the fee. It's worth it. You 00:45:51.550 --> 00:45:53.530 definitely want to make sure you get travel insurance. 00:45:53.840 --> 00:45:57.840 But from a reputable insurer, I recommend USAA. 00:45:58.219 --> 00:45:59.840 None of these people are paying me, by the way. 00:46:00.179 --> 00:46:02.860 But USAA, if you have access to them, they have 00:46:02.860 --> 00:46:07.800 a really good travel insurance. World Nomads 00:46:07.800 --> 00:46:10.800 is another one I looked into. Alliance, they've 00:46:10.800 --> 00:46:14.159 been around for a while. So definitely have you 00:46:14.159 --> 00:46:17.900 some travel insurance. Have multiple color copies 00:46:17.900 --> 00:46:22.380 of your passport and your visa. That's very important. 00:46:22.619 --> 00:46:23.960 And when you print them out, make sure you put 00:46:23.960 --> 00:46:26.500 them in sheet protectors. So they're protected 00:46:26.500 --> 00:46:29.139 from moisture and water damage and all that stuff. 00:46:30.019 --> 00:46:31.760 And if you're traveling with a group, even if 00:46:31.760 --> 00:46:34.420 you're traveling alone, make sure everyone in 00:46:34.420 --> 00:46:41.559 your group downloads the Life360 app. I was a 00:46:41.559 --> 00:46:43.360 little hesitant about that at first because I 00:46:43.360 --> 00:46:46.019 don't like anybody tracking me and all that stuff. 00:46:46.340 --> 00:46:49.420 But if you're in a new country, You're with the 00:46:49.420 --> 00:46:51.559 group. It's very important that you always know 00:46:51.559 --> 00:46:54.500 at all times where the people in your group are 00:46:54.500 --> 00:46:56.559 in case something happens and in case there's 00:46:56.559 --> 00:47:00.239 some type of emergency you want to have a handle 00:47:00.239 --> 00:47:04.079 on where everybody is and So you'll be able to 00:47:04.079 --> 00:47:09.840 rally and get to a point Familiar point for everyone. 00:47:10.179 --> 00:47:11.699 So just some things to remember if you're going 00:47:11.699 --> 00:47:15.599 to be traveling internationally Once you get 00:47:15.599 --> 00:47:20.050 beyond the airport I'll tell you this, the language 00:47:20.050 --> 00:47:25.070 barrier in Vietnam is real. I've definitely had 00:47:25.070 --> 00:47:28.309 to rely on Google Translate since being here. 00:47:29.730 --> 00:47:31.809 The vast majority of the people here do not speak 00:47:31.809 --> 00:47:36.429 English. They may be able to say like a phrase 00:47:36.429 --> 00:47:40.650 or two, but that's about it. And you know what, 00:47:40.650 --> 00:47:43.769 that's perfectly fine, because I can only say 00:47:43.769 --> 00:47:48.389 a few phrases in Vietnamese. You know, so it's 00:47:48.389 --> 00:47:50.750 all good. And I'm just going to say this as well. 00:47:51.610 --> 00:47:55.449 It's very arrogant to come into a foreign country 00:47:55.449 --> 00:47:59.869 and just expect for people to speak your language 00:47:59.869 --> 00:48:03.769 and then have the nerd get frustrated when they 00:48:03.769 --> 00:48:05.989 don't speak your language or can't speak your 00:48:05.989 --> 00:48:09.170 language. And it's likewise also very arrogant 00:48:09.170 --> 00:48:13.090 to come into a foreign country and not make any 00:48:13.090 --> 00:48:15.909 attempt to even try to learn the language. You 00:48:15.909 --> 00:48:19.889 know what I mean? It's a very lazy and Western 00:48:19.889 --> 00:48:25.309 approach to travel. So don't be that way. But 00:48:25.309 --> 00:48:27.710 overall, the Vietnamese people here are very 00:48:27.710 --> 00:48:31.550 nice. They're very friendly. Like I told you 00:48:31.550 --> 00:48:34.429 before, they have their little ways about them 00:48:34.429 --> 00:48:38.750 too, which can be sort of off -putting to Westerners. 00:48:40.329 --> 00:48:43.969 First of all, they are very loud. The Vietnamese 00:48:43.969 --> 00:48:46.570 people are very loud. Sort of in the same way 00:48:46.570 --> 00:48:49.610 Nigerians are loud when they're speaking to one 00:48:49.610 --> 00:48:53.650 another. You know, it can often sound like they're 00:48:53.650 --> 00:48:55.789 arguing back and forth, but they're not. It's 00:48:55.789 --> 00:48:58.429 just how they talk. The Vietnamese people are 00:48:58.429 --> 00:49:03.429 the same way. What else? Vietnamese people, okay, 00:49:03.429 --> 00:49:07.769 so they commonly do something that I can't stand, 00:49:08.329 --> 00:49:14.289 which is they cough and sneeze loud as hell. 00:49:15.159 --> 00:49:19.099 into the air have zero attempts to cover their 00:49:19.099 --> 00:49:20.980 mouth, cover their nose. They don't do any of 00:49:20.980 --> 00:49:23.900 that. They don't care if they're in public, in 00:49:23.900 --> 00:49:28.000 an elevator. They just don't care. And that sort 00:49:28.000 --> 00:49:32.139 of stuff drives me crazy. I'm somewhat of a, 00:49:32.260 --> 00:49:36.079 I would say like I'm a closeted germaphobe. I 00:49:36.079 --> 00:49:38.139 try my best to keep it concealed, but I just 00:49:38.139 --> 00:49:40.420 can't stand when people around me are coughing 00:49:40.420 --> 00:49:42.300 and sneezing and all of that. It just drives 00:49:42.300 --> 00:49:47.429 me up a wall. And so now when people start with 00:49:47.429 --> 00:49:50.210 all of that, I just put on my mask. I just put 00:49:50.210 --> 00:49:53.170 on my mask. I don't care if they think it's rude. 00:49:53.230 --> 00:49:55.989 I don't care. I'm putting on my mask with an 00:49:55.989 --> 00:50:02.210 attitude. Let's talk about elevator etiquette 00:50:02.210 --> 00:50:08.929 in Vietnam for a moment. It doesn't exist. Okay, 00:50:08.929 --> 00:50:11.889 so you know how like in the States or virtually 00:50:11.889 --> 00:50:15.469 anywhere else in the world, If people are already 00:50:15.469 --> 00:50:18.550 on an elevator, and let's say they're headed 00:50:18.550 --> 00:50:20.690 to the ground floor, they're already on the elevator, 00:50:21.150 --> 00:50:23.409 headed to the ground floor, and then there are 00:50:23.409 --> 00:50:25.949 also people on the ground floor waiting for the 00:50:25.949 --> 00:50:30.570 same elevator, right? Normally what would happen, 00:50:31.130 --> 00:50:34.110 or what should happen is that once the door opens 00:50:34.110 --> 00:50:37.610 on the ground floor, you let the people who already 00:50:37.610 --> 00:50:43.599 are on the elevator get off. They don't do that 00:50:43.599 --> 00:50:47.219 here. When the elevator door opens, the people 00:50:47.219 --> 00:50:49.260 who are waiting to get in, they're just going 00:50:49.260 --> 00:50:51.260 to bogart their way inside the elevator. They 00:50:51.260 --> 00:50:53.500 don't care who's in there, who's trying to get 00:50:53.500 --> 00:50:56.739 out. They don't make any space for the people 00:50:56.739 --> 00:51:00.320 to exit first. You have to really get used to 00:51:00.320 --> 00:51:03.280 it. It really took me off guard when I first 00:51:03.280 --> 00:51:07.639 arrived here. But that's just one of the crazy 00:51:07.639 --> 00:51:10.880 things about Vietnamese people that you just 00:51:10.880 --> 00:51:13.800 kind of have to have a sense of humor about and 00:51:13.800 --> 00:51:16.019 take with a grain of salt. Okay, I've talked 00:51:16.019 --> 00:51:18.739 enough shit about my Vietnamese brothers and 00:51:18.739 --> 00:51:23.219 sisters, okay? Before we sign off for the day, 00:51:23.219 --> 00:51:25.400 I'm gonna touch on something that really surprised 00:51:25.400 --> 00:51:30.139 me since being here, and that's healthcare. Healthcare 00:51:30.139 --> 00:51:34.039 in Vietnam, at least here in Ho Chi Minh City, 00:51:34.380 --> 00:51:39.179 is extremely, extremely efficient. So I told 00:51:39.179 --> 00:51:41.199 you when we came back from the break that I've 00:51:41.199 --> 00:51:43.679 been kind of under the weather. I recently had 00:51:43.679 --> 00:51:46.360 to go to the hospital for what turned out to 00:51:46.360 --> 00:51:52.679 be acute bronchitis. And just let me say, going 00:51:52.679 --> 00:51:56.059 to the hospital, this is one of the best healthcare 00:51:56.059 --> 00:52:00.039 experiences I've had anywhere. Now to be fair, 00:52:00.059 --> 00:52:03.159 I did go to an international hospital, which 00:52:03.159 --> 00:52:07.139 primarily cares to expats and foreigners. But 00:52:07.139 --> 00:52:11.360 even still, the level of service was top tier. 00:52:12.579 --> 00:52:15.940 Everything was streamlined. I booked the same 00:52:15.940 --> 00:52:18.300 day appointment right from my phone using an 00:52:18.300 --> 00:52:22.380 app. I was able to select my doctor, enter my 00:52:22.380 --> 00:52:25.840 symptoms. I did all of this within the app. So 00:52:25.840 --> 00:52:27.820 there was no back and forth. There was no run 00:52:27.820 --> 00:52:32.019 around. And when I got there, there was very 00:52:32.019 --> 00:52:35.909 minimal wait time. The facilities were clean. 00:52:35.969 --> 00:52:39.929 Everything was modern. The staff was extremely 00:52:39.929 --> 00:52:44.250 friendly and professional and attentive. The 00:52:44.250 --> 00:52:47.630 doctors there are so nice and super knowledgeable. 00:52:48.190 --> 00:52:50.909 Super knowledgeable doctors, and they actually 00:52:50.909 --> 00:52:53.409 take the time to explain what's going on with 00:52:53.409 --> 00:52:57.050 you. They listen to you about, you know, your 00:52:57.050 --> 00:52:59.710 symptoms. They're not trying to push pills and 00:52:59.710 --> 00:53:03.010 medications on you all the time. And here's the 00:53:03.010 --> 00:53:07.329 part that really got me. If I needed a referral, 00:53:08.510 --> 00:53:10.670 all that is handled on the spot. You know how 00:53:10.670 --> 00:53:15.210 like in the states, if you go to a general practitioner 00:53:15.210 --> 00:53:18.650 and you have to be referred out to a specialist, 00:53:19.090 --> 00:53:22.949 you have to make a completely separate appointment 00:53:22.949 --> 00:53:26.469 a lot of times. Pretty much 100 % of the time. 00:53:26.610 --> 00:53:32.550 It's not like that here. they call in the specialist 00:53:32.550 --> 00:53:35.570 from whatever floor they're on, and you see them 00:53:35.570 --> 00:53:38.809 that same day. So everything is handled very 00:53:38.809 --> 00:53:42.929 efficiently, and the total cost for everything, 00:53:43.110 --> 00:53:47.269 and mind you, I'm paying out of pocket. We're 00:53:47.269 --> 00:53:50.889 talking about the pharmaceuticals, the drugs 00:53:50.889 --> 00:53:54.369 that I had to get to help with the acute bronchitis, 00:53:55.289 --> 00:54:00.639 the doctor's visit itself, the exams. All the 00:54:00.639 --> 00:54:05.039 things, all that came to just under $100. And 00:54:05.039 --> 00:54:08.820 all my medical records, invoices, prescriptions, 00:54:08.960 --> 00:54:10.800 everything you need in terms of documentation 00:54:10.800 --> 00:54:14.559 is all there on the app, just easily able to 00:54:14.559 --> 00:54:18.940 be downloaded. So, you know, coming from the 00:54:18.940 --> 00:54:21.739 US healthcare system, which I think a lot of 00:54:21.739 --> 00:54:23.880 people waking up and understanding it's a scam, 00:54:24.360 --> 00:54:28.440 basically, it was a really different experience. 00:54:28.969 --> 00:54:32.190 And so moments like that just really enforced 00:54:32.190 --> 00:54:36.969 for me that this was the right move. And don't 00:54:36.969 --> 00:54:39.429 get me wrong, there are layers to this whole 00:54:39.429 --> 00:54:41.929 Vietnam experience that I'm still uncovering, 00:54:42.289 --> 00:54:47.510 and I'm realizing more and more every day. But 00:54:47.510 --> 00:54:51.969 I love where I am. And I didn't just relocate. 00:54:52.949 --> 00:54:57.260 It's like I repositioned myself. You know, there's 00:54:57.260 --> 00:54:59.980 gonna be a lot more that I'm gonna share about 00:54:59.980 --> 00:55:03.940 Vietnam and the things that I'm getting involved 00:55:03.940 --> 00:55:07.599 with here in future episodes. As I continue to 00:55:07.599 --> 00:55:09.840 get settled in and explore more of the country 00:55:09.840 --> 00:55:13.059 and connect with people from across different 00:55:13.059 --> 00:55:14.739 industries, I'm gonna start bringing some of 00:55:14.739 --> 00:55:17.880 those voices onto the show as well so that you're 00:55:17.880 --> 00:55:20.719 not just hearing my perspective but other people's 00:55:20.719 --> 00:55:23.239 as well and you're getting more of a well -rounded 00:55:23.239 --> 00:55:27.440 view of what life is really like out here. because 00:55:27.440 --> 00:55:31.519 Vietnam is very layered. It has a layered history 00:55:31.519 --> 00:55:35.300 and culture, vast opportunities out here, particularly 00:55:35.300 --> 00:55:39.039 if you are entrepreneurial and have a business 00:55:39.039 --> 00:55:43.780 mindset. So I'm just getting started. So if you 00:55:43.780 --> 00:55:46.260 enjoyed today's episode and you wanna follow 00:55:46.260 --> 00:55:49.519 me along this journey in real time, make sure 00:55:49.519 --> 00:55:52.500 you stay tapped in and tuned in. We're gonna 00:55:52.500 --> 00:55:56.969 be back with part two on May 13th. at 6 p .m. 00:55:56.969 --> 00:55:59.949 Eastern. That's gonna be 5 a .m. here locally 00:55:59.949 --> 00:56:04.030 if you're here in Vietnam. So yeah, I'm looking 00:56:04.030 --> 00:56:08.210 forward to it. And always remember, my experiences, 00:56:08.389 --> 00:56:10.929 your experiences, none of this stuff is random. 00:56:11.630 --> 00:56:15.929 Everything that comes your way is meant to expand 00:56:15.929 --> 00:56:20.130 you, to refine you. Okay, so until next time, 00:56:20.570 --> 00:56:25.139 keep growing, keep evolving. Keep walking in 00:56:25.139 --> 00:56:28.519 purpose. All right. I'm Dr. Andre Jerry and this 00:56:28.519 --> 00:56:30.500 has been live with Dr. Andre Jerry. I will see 00:56:30.500 --> 00:56:31.980 you next time. Take care, everybody.