The Faith of Sarah Palin

                     "So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed,
                      for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you.
                      I will uphold you with my righteous right hand."   -  Isaiah 41:10 NIV


Unearthed among the 24,000 pages of Sarah Palin's e-mails as governor of Alaska that the media demanded to be released was a poignant letter which she wrote and signed as "Trig's Creator, Heavenly Father." The email dump, the media had hoped, was supposed to show a vile and incompetent government official. Instead, they revealed a completely engaged, very responsible and  conscientious public servant. It also revealed a very humble and deeply religious woman. The letter she wrote as the voice of God was a raw display of an extraordinary faith of a mother accepting the will of God, seeking strength for the challenges of welcoming a baby with special needs and trusting that He only gives us what is best for us.

I leave you now with Sarah Palin's letter (courtesy of  The Daily Mail) to her family written before the birth of her son Trig and let it speak of her faith for itself. May you find in it God's love and wisdom, strength through difficult times, faith in plowing through the unknown and reward in caring and loving the pure-of-heart creations of God:

Sisters, Brother, Grandparents, Aunts, Uncles, Cousins, and Friends of Trig Paxson Van Palin (or whatever you end up naming him!):

I am blessing you with this surprise baby because I only want the best for you. I've heard your prayers that this baby will be happy and healthy, and I've answered them because Io nly want the best for you!

I heard your heart when you hinted that another boy would fit best in the Palin family, to round it out and complete that starting five line-up. Though another girl would be so nice, you didn't think you could ask for what you REALLY wanted, but I knew, so I gave you a boy because I only want the best for you!

Then, I put the idea in your hearts that his name should be "Trig", because it's so fitting, with two Norse meanings: "True" and "Brave Victory". You also have a Bristol Bay relative with that name, so I knew it would be best for you!

Then, I let Trig's mom have an exceptionally comfortable pregnancy so she could enjoy every minute of it, and I even seemed to rush it along so she could wait until near the end to surprise you with the news - that way Piper wouldn't have so long to wait and count down so many days - just like Christmastime when you have to wait, impatiently, for that special day to finally open your gift? (Or the way the Palins look forward to birthday celebrations that go on for three, four days... you all really like cake .) I know you, I knew you'd be better off with just a short time to wait!

Then, finally, I let Trig's mom and dad find out before he was born that this little boy will truly be a GIFT. They were told in early tests that Trig may provide more challenges, and more joy, than what they ever may have imagined or ever asked for. At first the news seemed unreal and sad and confusing . But I gave Trig' s mom and dad lots of time to think about it because they needed lots of time to understand that everything will be OK, in fact, everything will be great, because I only want the best for you!

I've given Trig's mom and dad peace and joy as they wait to meet their new son. I gave them a happy anticipation because they asked me for that. I'll give all of you the same happy anticipation and strength to deal with Trig's challenges, but I won't impose on you... I just need to know you want to receive my offer to be with all of you and help you everyday to make Trig's life a great one.

This new person in your life can help everyone put things in perspective and bind us together and get everyone focused on what really matters . The baby will expand your world and let you see and feel things you haven't experienced yet. He'll show you what "true, brave victory" really means as those who love him will think less about self and focus less on what the world tells you is "normal" or "perfect". You will grow and be blessed with greater understanding that will be born along with Trig.

Trig will be his dad's little buddy and he'll wear Carhartts while he learns to tinker in the garage. He'll love to be read to, he'll want to play goalie, and he'll steal his mom's heart just like Track, Bristol, Willow and Piper did. And Trig will be the cuddly, innocent, mischievous, dependent little brother that his siblings have been waiting for in fact Trig will - in some diagnostic ways - always be a mischievous, dependent little brother, because I created him a bit different than a lot of babies born into this world today.

Every child is created special, with awesome purpose and amazing potential. Children are the most precious and promising ingredient in this mixed up world you live in down there on earth. Trig is no different, except he has one extra chromosome. Doctors call it "Down's Syndrome", and Downs kids have challenges, but can bring you much delight and more love than you can ever imagine! Just wait and see, let me prove this, because I only want the best for you!

Some of the rest of the world may not want him, but take comfort in that because the world will not compete for him. Take care of him and he will always be yours!

Trig's mom and dad don't want people to focus on the baby's extra chromosome. They're human, so they haven't known how to explain this to people who are so caring and are interested in this new little Alaskan. Sarah and Todd want people to share in the joy of this gift I'm giving to the Palin family, and the greater Alaska family. Many people won't understand... and I understand that. Some will think Trig should not be allowed to be born because they fear a Downs child won't be considered "perfect" in your world. (But tell me, what do you earthlings consider "perfect" or even "normal" anyway? Have you peeked down any grocery store isle, or school hallway, or into your office lunchroom lately? Or considered the odd celebrities you celebrate as "perfect" on t.v.? Have you noticed I make `em all shapes and sizes? Believe me, there is no "perfect"!)

Many people will express sympathy, but you don't want or need that, because Trig will be a joy. You will have to trust me on this. I know it will take time to grasp this and come to accept that I only want the best for you, and I only give my best. Remember though: "My ways are not your ways, my thoughts are not your thoughts... for as the heavens are higher than the earth, my ways are higher than yours!"

I wrote that all down for you in the Good Book ! Look it up! You claim that you believe me - now it's time to live out that belief!

Please look to me as this new challenge and chapter of life unfolds in front of you. I promise to equip you. I won't give you anything you can't handle. I am answering your prayers. Trig can't wait to meet you. I'm giving you ONLY THE BEST!

Love,
Trig's Creator , Your Heavenly Father

Teaching "Diversity" in Schools - or is it Brainwashing?

                                      "Train up a child in a way he should go,
                                        And when he is old he will not depart from it."
                                                                                 - Proverbs 22:6 KJV


I recently visited one of my children's former elementary school. On my way out of the building, a boy skipping happily in the hallway caught my eye. He was wearing a bright yellow shirt with very puffy sleeves over what seemed like an ordinary Hanes blue shirt. I thought, "what mother would send her son to school in what was obviously a girl's frilly shirt?" But I didn't think much of it. Perhaps it was just one of those ooops things when a half-awake, half-asleep mom pulled out a wrong shirt and put it on on her son.

That's until I came home and  turned on the TV. I only caught part of the news clip but the message was clear enough. A school representative was talking about promoting diversity by encouraging elementary school-aged boys to dress like girls and vice-versa. This was to happen during the school's bullying prevention week. My thoughts went back to that boy in a puffy sleeved-shirt in my child's old school. Was "diversity to prevent bullying" the reason for his pretty girlie shirt?

This is not the first time we've heard of this story. A parent in a San Francisco middle school stepped in to prevent the cross-dressing theme of "Spirit Week". She was given the option of keeping her son home if he didn't want to participate in the event. A group of first-graders was bused to a field trip which was actually the wedding of their lesbian teacher. A book,  My Princess Boy, written by a mother whose son loves sequined dress and pink heels, is used at the boy's school to promote acceptance and tolerance.

I have known some gay men who were beaten to a pulp by their fathers when they were young boys in the hope that that would "straighten" them up. I have heard of some tomboys roughed up by young boys to show them that's how tough boys are. Acceptance, not sympathy, is what the LGTB community wants from our society. Most of them have probably lived confusing and torturous lives figuring out and finally accepting who they are. It takes courage to finally come out and be comfortable in their chosen lifestyles. For that, they have my respect. And even though homosexuality runs counter to my faith, it is not my place to judge them. I just know that it is so much better for people to be happy (no pun intended) than feel like the world is against them.

However, teaching sexual orientation diversity under the pretext of bullying prevention is misleading, if not downright deceiving. Parents welcome teaching of diversity at schools but to single out homosexuality appears to be political imposition of gay rights and movement on captive impressionable audience. A slow and subtle brainwashing. Yes, gays and lesbians are targets of bullying, and so are overweight kids, kids with disabilities, poor kids who cannot afford to buy trendy clothes, Jehova's Witnesses girls wearing long skirts everyday, Sikh and Muslim kids wearing turbans and veils, foreign-born kids speaking with heavy accent and broken english, foster kids, pimply teens, the nerds and the geeks, blacks, browns, whites. There are many sub-groups of kids who happen to stand out and get picked on by other students. These are bullied kids who also  dread going to school in fear of being abused every day, verbally and /or physically. Yet, it is unheard of for a school to set aside a specific day to promote bullying prevention of stutterers or a "Spirit Day" in honor of students with unpronounceable surnames.

Bullying is a serious issue and every student deserves to learn in a safe and least restrictive environment. But we cannot cherry-pick one special group and devote a chunk of schools' limited resources in addressing that one issue  to the detriment of others. People with special needs deserve as much respect and acceptance as the gays and lesbians, just like the Jews and everyone else, regardless of their gender, race, religious affiliation and cultural background.  Bullying prevention is a multi-causes, year-round endeavor. Let's keep the policy that way.

Also, schools cannot be all things to everybody. We must reinforce the parent-teacher partnership. Let the teachers go back to teaching the basics again. Based on 2009 assessment, American students lagged behind among 34 developed countries in math, science and reading. We are ranked  25th, 17th and 14th respectively while the Chinese ranked first in all three categories.  We must do better. We must give the teachers back the creativity and flexibility to make students excited about math, science and reading again. We need to be grooming more future engineers, innovators and entrepreneurs. Parents, on the other hand, cannot surrender their parental responsibilities. Character-building and hardwork, teaching empathy and tolerance, training children to be kind and respectful to others, are first and foremost duties of the parents. Parents must raise good citizens. Teachers should groom productive citizens. Partners in shaping the future leaders of our world, that is one thing we can all be happy about.

Sarah Palin's Freedom Day

          "Then you will know the truth, and the truth shall set you free" - John 8:32 NIV


June 10, 2011 is Sarah Palin's Freedom Day. That Friday morning, the State of Alaska released over 24,000 emails of the former governor during her tenure, made possible under a Freedom of Information Act request from the media  back in 2008 after she was announced as John McCain's running mate. The media has since been on a frenzy hoping and looking for a bombshell that will finally deal the final blow to this strong-willed Alaskan.

For two and a half years the media has shackled the Alaska governor with ball and chain of lies and distortions. Every conceivable derogatory label was slapped on this woman without any journalistic and investigative proof. Every word she said was twisted and spun out of context, every move she took was mocked. Fabricated stories, false accusations, defamation, , sexist jokes and every possible  body blow have been the set standard in covering the former governor.  If it's good news about her, you won't hear it on cable news. But if they can somehow twist her words into something dumb or out of this world, it'll surely be the headline. Her excellent speech and well-received visit to India got scant coverage. Her roaring campaign-like speech in Madison, Wisconsin was generally ignored by the major networks.Yet, like leeches clinging to a good log, they keep talking about her because the name Sarah Palin brings viewership and ratings to TV shows and traffic to their websites and blogs.

These emails were supposed to be the knockout punch that should snuff the political daylight out of Sarah Palin. So confident were they that they even enlisted the help of their readers to scour the documents for anything that is of interest and newsworthy that they might someday pursue. Imagine that ... amateurs who would probably do or say anything to get their 15-minute of YouTube fame doing the journalistic responsibilities of a professional media outlet.

So the e-mails were opened up to full view of the America public. But the outcome was not what the Left had hoped for. The Sarah Palin that emerged from these emails was a competent CEO on top of the day-to-day affairs of the state, an intelligent woman who completely understands the technicalities of the oil industry, a fighter who faced off Big Oil to secure  a better deal for her constituents, an official prudent with taxpayers' money, honest and transparent with her administration's activities and a leader concerned about her troops and someone who wants to contribute positively to national security and prosperity. What emerged was a boss who was willing to take the blows and criticisms for her staff, a charming and polite person but is combative when and if needed. The emails showed a multitasking woman balancing family and career just fine, and even revealed a fearful mother seeking strength and reassurance from God in welcoming a baby with special needs, trusting that He only wants the best for her and her family.

Unfiltered, raw, in her own words, the emails showed that she was what she said she was, she did what she said she did in Alaska. No fudging. no sugarcoating. The truth has set Sarah Palin free.

The media's scheme has backfired but don't expect them to play nice or fair anytime soon. Sarah Palin is too good a money machine for them. They will not stop their game but the lies that have been put out there have to be laid to rest. Her emails did just that. The lies need to die so that America can get back to actually debating real issues and real solutions to problems that are bankrupting this country, morally and fiscally. We need to be debating how to lower the 9.1% unemployment rate. We need to loudly question the Democrats in Congress; "where is the budget?" We need to ask the President, "where are the jobs?"

Now in the name of equal opportunity, may we see the emails of then-Senator Barack Obama and start the "vetting" of  a sitting president?

The Grads and the Three Little Pigs

             
                         "Don't let anyone look down on you because you are young,
                           but set an example for the believers in speech, in life, in love,
                           in faith and in purity."    - 1 Timothy 4:12 NIV


A few days ago, I had the blessed opportunity to attend  my son's high school baccalaureate service. As legal challenges on school-sanctioned religious activities  (like prayers before sporting events, inclusion of the word "God" in the Pledge of Allegiance ) continue to mount, it was reassuring that our local school district is still keeping the baccalaureate service tradition alive.

It was a little sad to note, though, the reality of where faith is in today's young people's lives. Out of  200+ graduating seniors, only about thirty showed up. Nevertheless, it was heartwarming to see the students who actually took the time to participate in this religious service, dressed in their Sunday best, their gowns and stoles looking freshly pressed. The kids ran the show, setting up the event, emceeing and providing entertainment with gospel singings. All three guest speakers gave inspiring words but the sermon from Pastor Scott Shaw probably left the most lasting impression on the audience. Wanting to impart wisdom and encouragement to the young grads, he took out from his pocket a book that is an all-time classic: The Three Little Pigs.

As the story goes, the Mother Pig sends off the Three Little Pigs, believing that they are now old enough to be building their own houses and living on their own. It didn't take long for the First Little Pig to build his house of straws. It took a bit longer for the Second Little Pig to finish his house of sticks. But the Third Little Pig took the longest time building his house of stone, carefully laying one brick at a time, making sure that his house of stone is strong and has a solid foundation. Then came the hungry Big Bad Wolf who wanted the little pigs for lunch. He huffed and puffed and easily blew the houses of straw and sticks down but the two Little Pigs managed to escape to safety in the Third Little Pig's house of stone. The Big Bad Wolf wanted to come in and threatened to huff and puff and blow the house of stone in. The Three Little Pigs said, "No, no, not by hair of my chinny chin chin." But as hard as the Big Bad Wolf huffed and puffed, he could not blow the house in. The Third Little Pig had the foresight and figured out that the Big bad Wolf would try to get into the house through the chimney. He put on the fire in the fireplace and set a kettle with boiling water. Sure enough the Big Bad Wolf slid down the chimney-straight into the hot pot and shoot himself out of the chimney and was never heard from again.

Who would have thought of looking at life through the snouts of a Mother Pig and the Three Little Pigs and the antics of a Big Bad Wolf?

Pastor Shaw had hoped that our young grads would be willing to work hard, invest their time and effort in building a future with strong foundation that can withstand the test of time. I would like to take it a bit farther.

When the graduation ceremony is over, these young men and women will go out into the adult world and find their own niche in the sun. My hope is that they would be stepping out armed with wisdoms, values and ethics shaped by the Mother Pigs or Father Pigs in their lives. Everybody deserves to have at least one Mother/Father Pig in his/her life. A parent or a mentor, a teacher or a coach, a pastor or a big brother or a big sister. A Mother/Father Pig who would teach the young ones common sense, how to live  a righteous life, to know right from wrong, to be independent and be street-smart. A Mother/Father Pig who would teach them how to be responsible and how to balance work and fun. A Mother/Father Pig who had allowed them to make mistakes on their own and learn from them. A Mother/Father Pig who would impart as much knowledge to them then be willing to let them go, trusting that they will have the sense and courage to work hard and build themselves sturdy houses and live happy lives.

Unfortunately, they will also meet some Big Bad Wolves along the way who would try to take advantage of their youth and inexperience. They come in many forms. They could come as bad as the affable swindler Bernie Madoff  or as an innocent-looking girl or boy with a laptop at Starbucks stealing identities. Or they could be a co-worker selling bogus timeshares or a roommate stealing their stuff. My hope is that our young grads will know how to trust strangers cautiously, to decide with their heads  so they do not get taken for a ride or lose their lunch.

They will also have the presence of many Little Pigs who will orbit their social lives. My hope is that they will be wise enough to choose those who will be positive influences in their lives. My hope is that they would stay away from pig slobs who are always taking the easy route, building a house of straw then be content in playing in the mud all day. Or those who always take the  "this will do for now" attitude, giving only half-hearted efforts in their endeavors and not accomplishing much in life. With ardent hope, may many of our grads be smart enough to surround themselves with forward-thinkers and  hard workers and those who take pride in their work. Those people who wouldn't mind building their dreams, brick by brick, sweating it out, making sure that their efforts are not easily knocked off by the slightest missteps and mistakes.

Someday, our young grads might meet people who will try to discourage or dissuade them from pursuing their goals, people who will tell them, "you can't do that", or "you shouldn't do that". Or they might encounter impossible situations or stumbling blocks to their plans. These would be the time to be stronger, be more focused, be more determined and not let anybody take away your dreams. Then just let out that rallying cry, "No, no, not by the hair of my chinny chin chin.

God speed, Grads!

Stuck in a Time Warp

                             "Forget the former things; do not dwell on the past."
                                                                                         - Isaiah 43:18 NIV


Last month, during a visit to the Westminster Abbey in London, President Barack Obama signed the guest book with a warm message, "“It is a great privilege to commemorate our common heritage, and common sacrifice.” and dated it May 24, 2008.

There lies America's trouble. Our President is stuck in a time warp.

The year 2008. It was a magical year for then-Senator Obama. With soaring words, he inspired his listeners, even giving some of them tingles in their legs. Fainting audience was a common occurence in his rallies.Throngs of supporters and fans followed wherever he appeared. He rode the wave of admiration of people from all walks of life, from all corners of the world. Every word he spoke carried much weight like they were words from God. He was called the Second Coming of God, The Messiah, The One. For a nation (and the world) eager to close eight years of  George W. Bush's cowboy presidency, Mr. Obama was seen as the political savior, a perception that Team Obama eagerly embraced and did nothing to discourage.

Some people love the idea of burying time capsules, putting some of their mementos in a box or a bottle, leaving the future generations a peek on how people in the past lived. The mainstream media wasted nothing in encapsulating every detail of President Obama's golden public moments. They documented his every speech, every move, even his glistening pectorals. But the president should have taken himself out of the time capsule. He belongs here, not in a memory box, and must do the job that he sought to do.

In these tough times, it is alright to look back once in a while to good-old-days for inspiration. President Obama is, by all means, entitled to reminisce the glory of the year 2008 but the sounds of thunderous applause of the adoring crowds must NOT drown out the real-time voices of everyday Americans pleading him to deliver on his words. The President promised to focus like a laser on job creation but right now, the unemployment rate stands at a dismal 9% (despite the $800 billion stimulus package that he promised would keep unemployment rate below 8%). President Obama promised  fiscal responsibility yet his fellow Democrats in Congress has not produced a budget in two years. What household in America can survive without a budget? Americans never fancied the individual mandate on Obamacare yet he crammed it down out throats then turned around and handed out 1000+ waivers to the same people and groups who fought for the Obamacare to be passed.  He promised to end the bitter partisanship in Washington but talks of moats and alligators and "rewarding your friends and punishing the enemies" do nothing to heal but only heightens the division among political parties and their supporters. America is crying out for the government to stop spending money that we do not have. We cannot keep on borrowing money from China without choking our own economy to bankruptcy.

It's 2011, two and a half years into the president's term. Americans are saying: "Enough of the rhetorics, Sir, get off the campaign mode. Please do not dwell in the past, roll up your sleeves and get to work."

Abortion: It's the Wrong Choice

                 "Children are a gift from the Lord: they are a reward from Him".
                                                                                                  - Psalm 127:3
  

If it were a Hollywood movie, in the eyes of the Feminists, Sarah Palin would be celebrated as a once-in-a-lifetime heroine who possesses the survival instincts of Lara Croft in the wild, who could sit as comfortably on a Harley or a snowmachine as she would on a chair chatting it up with Oprah. She could fell a caribou in a single shot and deftly dress a moose as she could cuttingly slash the budget of the State of Alaska. She is intelligent, strong and  independent who refudiates the rules of politics and plays by her own rules. A fit mother of five who plays down her good looks with a frumpy up-do, she was as tough as a nail fighting the oil companies in Alaska as she was as sweet as any mother could be holding and smiling at her son, Trig, who was born with Down Syndrome.

That's the part when the Feminists turned off the movie and dropped all the pretense of the bonds that strong women share. Today, feminism equals abortion rights. Sarah Palin knew that her baby had Down syndrome before he was born. She should have done what 90% of pregnant mothers given a Down syndrome diagnosis and not bring the baby to life.

Sarah Palin has always been a vocal pro-life proponent and his son, Trig, is a living proof that she walks the walk. To pro-choice feminists, being pro-life is an unforgivable offense. To the pro-abortion advocates, there is only one choice - abortion. They insist on it.

By the fifth week of pregnancy, a fetus' heart starts to form and can be detected by an ultrasound. By week 6, it starts to pump blood. To the pro-choice advocates, a pulsating heart does not mean anything. Unless a being is walking and breathing out in this world, it cannot be called a person, thus has no right, legally or otherwise. And if it were up to then-Senator Barack Obama, even if a fetus somehow managed to show signs of life after an unsuccessful abortion (thereby making it a "born alive infant"), it still should NOT be entitled to legal protection. In defending his opposition to "Born Alive" bill in the Illinois legistature, Sen. Obama declared that such bill would be nothing but a backdoor attack to women's legal rights to abortion.

When a pregnant woman goes to a Lamaze class, sometimes she is shown a film of an actual childbirth (a natural childbirth or caesarian, or both) to give her confidence when the big moment comes. If the same mother goes to an abortion clinic, one wonders if the doctor would also show her films of different methods of abortion to boost her confidence to carry on with the procedure. Would it be done through dilation of the uterus, suction aspiration, dilation and curretage, dilation and evacuation, saline injection, prostaglandin chemical or hysterotomy section or partial-birth? 

Americans accept the legal fact that abortion is allowed in the case of rape or incest or when the mother's health is in danger. Pro-choice advocates claim that restricting abortion would push helpless pregnant women back to the dark alleys where unlicensed doctors would perform the procedure. This narrative just does not make sense because if a woman has been raped or the pregnancy puts her health in danger, the very place where she needs to be seen is a proper hospital where she could get all the psychological and medical help that she needs, not in  the back alleys with some quack doctor who will disappear after he takes her money.

After the abortion is done and the disintegrated fetus is collected in a bag or a pan, one wonders what happens to it. Does it end up in a dumpster or does it get buried in the ground? When our pet goldfish or pet dog dies, we give it a sad farewell, burying it, saying a prayer over it, telling our children that it will rest in peace in dog or fish heaven.  It is odd that household pets get more respectful (and well-deserved, yes) goodbyes in their passing while an aborted fetus just sits in a bag.

It is ironic how some people would willingly lay down their lives for an old tree so it would not be cut down and would be allowed to live another one hundred years, or how celebrities made loud noise protesting KFC for keeping their chickens in crowded coops, or how politicians allowed communities in California to become ghost towns just to protect 2-inch fish. Yet, when it comes to a fetus in a mother's belly, a "choice" becomes its death sentence.

My family used to raise chickens when I was a young child and I have seen how a chicken journeys from its cage to a chopping block then to my dinner plate.  I remember holding down a chicken by its body while a sibling chopped off its head. While still holding the fowl to let some of the blood drain out, I would feel in my hands its heart pounding fast, then slower and fainter until it beat no more. Its warm body had turned cold. It's dead.

Some people might find the chicken story too graphic. As crude as the comparison may seem, a chicken's death is  nothing compared  to what one can imagine a fetus being aborted goes through. One does not need to see a film of an actual abortion to know that it is a violent procedure. I doubt if there ever is one ( that would be too horrific for a tree-hugger or an animal rights advocate to watch and pro-choice groups might not allow such film to circulate in public).  But I can picture in my mind a fetus being suctioned out of a woman's birth canal - limbs. hair, heart, fingernails and all. The crumbled mess of blood and flesh is stashed away in a trash bag, discarded in a dumpster along with our daily filth, dead and cold. Just like the chicken.

Abortion is a heart-rending decision that a woman in less-than-ideal circumstance might consider. It is a decision that will stay with her forever. But for those advocates who nonchalantly insist that a fetus is a mere blob of cells, I would like them to step forward, and volunteer to hold an aborted fetus' heart in the palm of their hand, watch it contract and expand until it stops pulsating completely. Then pray tell, is it life or just a mushy piece of flesh?

(Note: Parts of this article come from my earlier post titled "To be Against Abortion is a Choice, Too.")