Loving Jesus with Schizophrenia: Tom’s Brilliantly Complicated Life in Christ (Part 2)
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Dave Quak
Welcome to Sunburnt Souls. I'm Dave Quak and on this show we speak about life and faith and our mental wellbeing. And today, I'm so stoked because Tom is back. Last year I interviewed Tom. He's a man of God who walks with schizophrenia, runs a business and just is an all around awesome guy. And today we're going to talk about what it's like to live with schizophrenia and love Jesus and run a business and a lot of other things.
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Dave Quak
So sit back and relax and thanks for tuning into Summer and souls. So, Tom, with all that in mind, I only have one opportunity to ask this question and I have to ask you, do people with, you know, mental health conditions and let's talk specifically about schizophrenia, because that's what you get to carry. Do you like watching movies about people with schizophrenia?
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Tomas Heligr-Pyke
Yes you do. Yes I do. They're like, I don't I don't know why, but they are my favorite sorts of movies. I guess because I can relate to the character. Like favorite movie, Shutter Island.
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Dave Quak
Shutter Island, that's the one.
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Tomas Heligr-Pyke
That's a really good word. Fight club. And because you in those ones, you don't know that they are into spoilers.
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Dave Quak
Yeah, there's lots of spoilers.
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Tomas Heligr-Pyke
There's lots of spoilers. You don't know that they are until like halfway through when you get towards the end, he's like, oh yeah.
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Dave Quak
Oh man.
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Tomas Heligr-Pyke
That's why I hit it so well.
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Dave Quak
In Shutter Island the next morning when he's like, back to reset, he's like, there's something going on here. Like after they've gone through all that effort to try to get him rehabbed and then it didn't work. Yeah. What about A Beautiful Mind? I think that was one of the most original.
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Tomas Heligr-Pyke
I want to watch that because that's about the dude that invented game theory, isn't it?
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Dave Quak
Oh, man. Maybe. I'm not sure. It's got the it's the Russell Crowe one. And he's like, in the, he's a professor.
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Tomas Heligr-Pyke
Yeah. I think it's someone that didn't invent a game through right. Correct me if I'm wrong, but that's been on my watch list for ages. I just haven't had a chance to watch it. But like, it was there that invented game theory. Like super used, super utilized thing across the entire world. Like it's used in economics and like all sorts of use in business.
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Tomas Heligr-Pyke
Everything. And dude has schizophrenia and like, wasn't all there, but he invented this beautiful thing that every single person uses that's inside.
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Dave Quak
I didn't realize that's what it was based on, and I'm pretty sure it was. And when you said game theory just then, because I've got a 16 year old gaming son, I didn't know if it was something to do with gaming. I didn't know what it was, but like, those movies are pretty intense, and I think if they're done well, they can depict a important conversation.
00:02:32:01 - 00:02:53:06
Dave Quak
There's a mark Ruffalo plays a bipolar guy in Infinitely Polar Bear, and it's awesome. Man. I didn't even know that movie existed until maybe six months ago. It popped up on Netflix, and he depicts someone with bipolar so well that I was like, see? See? I wanted everyone who knows me and loves me to watch it, just like that's what it's like.
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Tomas Heligr-Pyke
That's beautiful.
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Dave Quak
They are good at that. Tell me, your, consulting firms going well?
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Tomas Heligr-Pyke
Yes. Yes it is.
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Dave Quak
Tell us about that.
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Tomas Heligr-Pyke
Well, I run my own software engineering consultancy and marketing agency called to media.
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Dave Quak
So I'll plug it in.
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Tomas Heligr-Pyke
I'll plug it. Yeah, it's called to media and it's going quite well. Yeah. So I do like web apps and mobile apps for bond Uni and Queensland Health. And about a hospital. Yeah, I do a lot of consultancy work for a couple of other agencies on the Gold Coast. Wanted to expand over the next year because that'll be nice.
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Tomas Heligr-Pyke
But while I'm doing that I'm also doing Sto. One of my friends from church came up to me was like, hey, Tom, you want to do you want to join me on a startup because you know how to build an app? It didn't realize all I could do at the time.
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Dave Quak
You know, just an.
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Tomas Heligr-Pyke
Appeal. It was like I was like, oh, you do all that? Oh, I really picked perfect. Well, I guess. Yes you did. Yeah. So it was like a barbershop availability app thing that we're working on together called campus.
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Dave Quak
Nice.
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Tomas Heligr-Pyke
So I've got a couple of clients there and we're starting off. We've only been doing it for five months. It was a very quick app to build.
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Dave Quak
But, gee, that's cool. What, so you can get a barber shop appointment at any barber shop? Yeah.
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Tomas Heligr-Pyke
Yeah, fine. We're doing scheduling now. I wasn't part of the original idea, but we talked to somebody was like, we need scheduling who's like, okay, so that's an easy sell for those sorts. But it was the the original idea was you get your app like the compass app, and that shows the availability of all the barbers near you.
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Tomas Heligr-Pyke
So then you can say, oh, I need a haircut right now. This one's available now, I'm going to go over there. Yeah. So like, you know, when you're going around a shopping center and you have to have a haircut. Yeah. And then you end up going to every single shopping. Yeah. Like every single barber shop in the shopping center, seeing the lines up and you're like, okay, I'm going to try again next week.
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Dave Quak
It's true, it's true. Or the one I've got at my local one, you write your name on the board and then just like hope that you're not your name comes up in the right order. Yeah. And then but it could be anywhere from like five minutes to like an hour and a half.
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Tomas Heligr-Pyke
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Dave Quak
That's a good.
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Tomas Heligr-Pyke
Idea. There's a reason my hair grows so long as well.
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Dave Quak
You do. You do look like you're from the hippie movement at the moment.
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Tomas Heligr-Pyke
I've got the doily on. Yeah.
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Dave Quak
Well have to take the photo of this for the, for the, podcast shot, but you have literally wearing a crocheted doily looking shirt.
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Tomas Heligr-Pyke
I literally have it is my favorite shirt. So it's getting summer. That's why that's when I can get away with it.
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Dave Quak
How does one acquire a shirt like that? Is it a gift? Is it a party?
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Tomas Heligr-Pyke
No. It was from Cotton On, and it was a choice that I made to get it much to everyone's, I remember getting ever. It was like, what is that? You got a doily? I was like, yes, yes I did, yes, I did.
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Dave Quak
Man, it's so cool here in about your life, Tom. I like hearing about the business because it encourages me, because I've been, you know, watching you over these last year since our last chat. And you're obviously flourishing in your faith, doing well in business, carrying mental health issues. And I think it's good to interview someone who's doing well while carrying all of that.
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Dave Quak
How how is it running a business having schizophrenia?
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Tomas Heligr-Pyke
Running a business in general is hard. Running it with schizophrenia is very difficult.
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Dave Quak
Yeah.
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Tomas Heligr-Pyke
Because like, I remember because I've been doing it for, like five years now. So I used to work at like a PR agency doing web development. And then I worked my way up very quickly, became head of it, and then I resigned from there, became a junior dev. So like downgraded myself just for some clarity. Yeah. For reprieve.
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Tomas Heligr-Pyke
I was working on my business and then I finally was able to do it full time. And that was like cool. But then it was like, oh, I actually have to talk to people. And I'm very, very introverted and I don't like talking to people. And there was so many like negative, negative thoughts around every single conversation that I had with a client because they, you know, took everything very personally back in the first couple of years.
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Tomas Heligr-Pyke
It's very interesting. I've gotten better at it. I've become more cocky as the time goes on.
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Dave Quak
We probably need a little bit of that, don't you?
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Tomas Heligr-Pyke
Yes, yes.
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Dave Quak
But like, has it ever been times where, like, you're in a business? Kind of, I don't know, like you're doing something, developing a web app or something and you're not sure if you're thinking clearly. Oh, do you know what I mean? Like, if any of the neurotransmitters are getting overlapped or, you know, like how sometimes you see things.
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Dave Quak
I know you said last time, you sometimes see things or whatever. Has there been any, any, any times where that's kind of invaded your workspace?
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Tomas Heligr-Pyke
100%. I remember, quite recently, actually, I think it was after the, first podcast. But I remember I was having, like, really stressed out because I lost a major contract or something. Everything was kind of going wrong. And I remember just sitting at my desk because I now work out of one of my contracts offices because I wanted an office to work.
00:07:48:18 - 00:07:52:18
Tomas Heligr-Pyke
I was like, I'll just hold space here because then we can tap you on the shoulder and give you work. Oh yeah.
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Dave Quak
And you get a free office.
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Tomas Heligr-Pyke
And I get a free office. So I was like, you know, that's a good deal. But I remember sitting there one day and I was working. I was stressed out in my mind. I was just like, okay, I just need to get this stuff done. And then this hand came from, like, beside me, like. And it looks, you know, like the grim reaper is just like a skeleton.
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Tomas Heligr-Pyke
It was just this big black grim Reaper hand came and touched me on the shoulder. I was just like, I don't like that at all. That it freaked me out. It was just like to what are the people that I work close to? It's like, I need to go for a walk. I'm just going to go for a quick like, walk around, get it, get an energy drink, and then come back because, yeah, it does sometimes, you know.
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Tomas Heligr-Pyke
Yeah. Effect.
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Dave Quak
So seeing the Grim Reaper hand like that would freak most people out. Of course, but you're a bit more used to it than most. Yeah, but like, so when that sort of stuff happens, how do you know when things are real now? Obviously grim Reaper hand seems very much not real. Yeah, but is that ever, like, real? Real where you can't tell if it's like, say it's a person rather than a grim reaper putting their hand on your shoulder, but it's actually not happening.
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Dave Quak
Has that ever happened?
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Tomas Heligr-Pyke
Oh, if it has, I don't know about it. And that's the.
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Dave Quak
Scary. That's actually a scary thought.
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Tomas Heligr-Pyke
So at least with the ones that I know about, because I'm beyond fearful that that's happened and that I just don't know because like, how.
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Dave Quak
Would I how would you know?
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Tomas Heligr-Pyke
The only way that I know is because it doesn't make logical sense. So like Grim Reaper had touched me, I turn around, it's gone. Or it's, you know, something or something behind me. Or like, I remember I was driving down to, like, village Village church at one late night. For some reason I forget why, but I was driving down and then a headless woman that was fully naked ran across the road.
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Tomas Heligr-Pyke
I was just like, okay, yeah. I was just like, I don't like that. No, but like, that was obvious that it wasn't real. Okay, so no logical way that that could be a thing.
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Dave Quak
Yeah.
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Tomas Heligr-Pyke
Grim Reaper had no logical way that that could be a thing or a shadowy figure in the corner, which I see a lot at the moment. Like literally just walking down, it's like, oh, there's one. Okay. I'm just going to know that. Like that makes sense that it's not there. Oh yeah. Could be a spiritual where I'm saying, who knows?
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Tomas Heligr-Pyke
But the point being is it's obvious. If it wasn't obvious, I don't know how I'd actually be able to tell. And that is the scary.
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Dave Quak
So that's a good thought. I didn't even think of that when I asked the question, because if it looks the same as a person or whatever, how would you know?
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Tomas Heligr-Pyke
Yeah, yeah.
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Dave Quak
Oh that's scary. Yeah. And you mentioned the spiritual realm too. Like it is really encouraging from my seat to see you living so full on for Jesus in all of this, you know, like how how have you been gone spiritually since we last chat?
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Tomas Heligr-Pyke
Oh, yeah. Yeah, yeah. He's like at the forefront because with my business especially, I would not be where I am now if it wasn't for God. It's for Jesus because there is no way, like I look back on everything that has happened, like all the contracts that I got just randomly like the one in, Coolangatta, Cali, one of my bigger ones.
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Tomas Heligr-Pyke
They literally just family on LinkedIn, and I didn't have any LinkedIn presence or any bother with that. And they found me. I was like, there's no way that that just happened randomly. Yeah, that had to be like a nudge from yeah, God to push them in my direction. So then that I can go in and help them out and, and all of it is very much so in my mind, God given.
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Tomas Heligr-Pyke
There's nothing that I've done special to help with that. Yeah. Other than obviously being able to do the job.
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Dave Quak
So yeah.
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Tomas Heligr-Pyke
And when it comes to like the hallucinations in the schizophrenia stuff, it's like, God, just protect me. Yeah, just help me out. Yeah.
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Dave Quak
Yeah, man.
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Tomas Heligr-Pyke
It usually is just like a bit of if something major like that happens, it's usually like a bit of swearing and there's like, okay, guys, help! Can you just, like, calm me down a bit? Like just just what? I've been doing a lot because I've been having a lot of anxiety recently with some work stuff and some personal stuff.
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Tomas Heligr-Pyke
I was just like, hey, God, my dad's quite good at this because he keeps reminding me to do this very much so hey, God, I'm not handling this. Can you just take it off me and like, I give this to you so that I can just try and think about stuff a little bit clearer? Because you're. I know you're with me, and I know you've got a plan, and I know you're helping me out and you've never failed me before.
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Tomas Heligr-Pyke
I know you won't fail me again. So can you help me with this feeling of anxiety or this, like, sad, bad feeling I've got and usually works.
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Dave Quak
It usually works. Yeah, yeah. Have you had to train yourself to get to a place where it usually works? Do you know what I mean? Like, was it always working from the start or is it like, you know, now you do it once and it maybe gets a bit of breakthrough? Did you used to have to do it ten times for the same situation?
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Tomas Heligr-Pyke
I used to be more stubborn, to be honest. I used all.
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Dave Quak
Right.
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Tomas Heligr-Pyke
So earlier in my life when I had like a few like that, because I was taught to be strong, I was a stubborn dude. But, I was very much so. Okay, this is what's happening. I feel like this. There's no logical reason for it. So I'm going to overthink this and then get myself out of the situation because I'm overthinking it.
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Tomas Heligr-Pyke
Yeah. And then I had to be very stubborn and say I don't need anyone's help. I can figure this out. And then it was like, this is a figure that no, actually is better to just give it to God because he's in control of everything. Really helped, made me feel a lot happier. Yeah. Yeah. And yeah.
00:13:15:08 - 00:13:37:08
Dave Quak
Yeah. I don't know if there's any overlap with schizophrenia and bipolar in this realm. But in that, very. As you're talking about that, Tom, I think about one thing that I find really hard to give over and is actually my hate of people that I feel are against me, and they may not necessarily be against me. And it's actually a real problem.
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Dave Quak
I was talking to a friend yesterday and then another one last week because I'm trying to figure this out, but I've got just unforgiveness and hate towards people, and I find it really hard to do that just to give it over to God and say, you know what, man? They, your children, you love them, take this burden from me and instead I'll just plot their demise and stuff.
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Tomas Heligr-Pyke
I think the paranoia element comes into it a lot, although I've been getting better at that one. I don't know how I became that one. I think that's very much so. Just protect me a bit. Because I remember like three years ago, I used to get very paranoid, so like I'd have a big and it's all about way because it looks like related to everything I do the majority of my life at this point.
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Tomas Heligr-Pyke
And it was always like, oh, this contract is doing this. This person said this in this email. What do they actually think? Yeah. And then it'd be like, oh, is the contract going to go, what's going to happen if the contract goes? And then I get paranoid, they're plotting against me in that sort of way, or they're going to just pull the plug.
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Tomas Heligr-Pyke
Yeah. It never, never was the case. If it was the very explanatory of why it's like, oh, because we hired someone internally now and we know that you were here, so we're going to do a transition period. And some of that was very nice. But like in your mind at the time, you're very much so. Oh, everyone's everyone's out for me okay.
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Dave Quak
Let's say that's similar. So you like stay on in a hypothetical possible tension that may not even ever happen, but we because we entertain it so much, it becomes so real in our mind. Yes. It's like you paid the price anyway.
00:15:07:02 - 00:15:28:14
Tomas Heligr-Pyke
Yeah. So yeah. And I actually had this conversation with my sister this morning because she was upset about something. I was like, and she's like, oh, I don't know if I like. I was like, just ask person X, y, Z if they can do situation x, y, z. I was just like, oh no, but I don't know if they've got the money for that or the thing to do though, or all of these hypotheticals that she won't ever.
00:15:28:14 - 00:15:50:06
Tomas Heligr-Pyke
Yeah, understand or like no exists because there's no control over that. No control over all the hypotheticals over here when all you have to do is just ask. Yeah. So I'm just like, I understand, Ricky, but you just need to ask. Yeah. Because you don't. There's so many things in the world that could be happening that could control it, could alter it.
00:15:50:08 - 00:16:05:10
Tomas Heligr-Pyke
But you don't have control over that. All you have control over is just doing the thing. Yeah. And then what happens from that? It might lead to something else. And then that is that too, like my own business clients too, where I, I used to panic a lot of oh, this could hypothetically happen or they're thinking about this.
00:16:05:10 - 00:16:15:04
Tomas Heligr-Pyke
And then it had to like kind of trade myself away for this. Like, no, doesn't matter. End of the day, all I have to do is this one step and then take each day as it comes. Yeah, yeah.
00:16:15:06 - 00:16:18:14
Dave Quak
But that's way easier said than done.
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Tomas Heligr-Pyke
Why? Easier said than done.
00:16:19:22 - 00:16:31:19
Dave Quak
All right. How many of us are bound up in hypotheticals? You know, like hypothetical conflict, hypothetical firings? Oh, apathetic. Cool. You know, it's horrible. It's debilitating man.
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Tomas Heligr-Pyke
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Dave Quak
You know where the gospels are like not. And I put that stuff down like, you know you'll have enough bread for tomorrow. Like it's all going to be okay, but it just doesn't feel like it at the time.
00:16:42:00 - 00:17:06:24
Tomas Heligr-Pyke
I think it's just the human condition of worrying about everything that you can't control. Yeah. Because yeah. Because yeah, it's literally like right now my business is going well. But last have to be very like quiet. Yeah, it worries me. But I know that seasonality because it's usually tax time is insane and Christmas is quiet. Yeah. And currently going into the Christmas period and I've got all these projects lined up going over the next three months, which will be really good.
00:17:07:05 - 00:17:24:11
Tomas Heligr-Pyke
But right now it's like, oh cool. I haven't had any projects since September. What is happening? And then I start hyper nonviolently hyper fixating on, oh, what if I don't make enough money to pay myself next month? What if I have to shut down the business? What if I have to sell that? It's like, wait, I need to not worry about that.
00:17:24:13 - 00:17:33:18
Tomas Heligr-Pyke
And that is a lot of break by, right? It's just I got a back again. I'm worried. Please help. Yeah,
00:17:33:20 - 00:17:47:23
Dave Quak
But you do run back to him. I reckon that's the key, right? Like, okay, we can go on our little segways and detours, but we got to run back to him. Yes. Like the fact that we're sitting here in our home and drinking an iced coffee means he hasn't let us down yet.
00:17:48:03 - 00:17:48:12
Tomas Heligr-Pyke
No.
00:17:48:18 - 00:17:56:09
Dave Quak
You know, like we're still here. And. Yeah, I think that's important to remember. Like, it can be crap. But you're still here. You're still breathing. You're still moving forward.
00:17:56:09 - 00:18:10:10
Tomas Heligr-Pyke
Yeah. You've got to be grateful of all the things that you do have. Yeah. And that's what like, I think God's been helping remind me of that a lot recently. Because, like, running a business is stressful. Running a startup is stressful, right? Yeah.
00:18:10:15 - 00:18:12:12
Dave Quak
The new thing rather than the old thing.
00:18:12:12 - 00:18:14:13
Tomas Heligr-Pyke
Yeah, the new thing and the old thing at the same time.
00:18:14:13 - 00:18:15:22
Dave Quak
Which one's more stressful?
00:18:15:24 - 00:18:23:01
Tomas Heligr-Pyke
Oh, well, one makes me money. That's very stressful. I'd like money at one and one goes a lot of time, but it's fun.
00:18:23:06 - 00:18:23:20
Dave Quak
Yeah. Okay.
00:18:23:20 - 00:18:47:19
Tomas Heligr-Pyke
You like that tightening and, like, I see the potential. So it's really interesting. But they're both really stressful in very different ways. Yeah. It's like cool. I'm just gonna jump on both of those. But, I feel like God's been very much so reminding me of all the good things that I have in my life now. Yeah, just to show it's like you may be stressed about this, and you may be panicking or like, hyper fixating on things you don't control.
00:18:47:19 - 00:18:59:21
Tomas Heligr-Pyke
But remember, you got your family. Yeah. You got, your sister that you're looking after. You've got your mum and dad that look after you. You've got a place that you can actually stay out of for the time being.
00:18:59:21 - 00:19:00:23
Dave Quak
Yeah, man.
00:19:01:00 - 00:19:02:12
Tomas Heligr-Pyke
You got a car that kind of works.
00:19:02:12 - 00:19:04:21
Dave Quak
But you car's cool, man. We just went and got coffee, but.
00:19:04:21 - 00:19:07:00
Tomas Heligr-Pyke
The bumper, the bumpers falling off.
00:19:07:02 - 00:19:09:16
Dave Quak
Okay, you can't see it when you're in that. Yeah.
00:19:09:18 - 00:19:10:08
Tomas Heligr-Pyke
I just.
00:19:10:08 - 00:19:13:03
Dave Quak
Got really cold, like dashboard and digital.
00:19:13:03 - 00:19:28:21
Tomas Heligr-Pyke
Stuff. Yeah. No, I like I like it. I, it's on my bad books at the moment because the front fender, one of the little. I don't know why they make everything out of plastic, but the little plastic screw popped out. Well, it was dry. I figured I just this oh, I was like, it.
00:19:28:21 - 00:19:29:15
Dave Quak
Does that all the time.
00:19:29:16 - 00:19:35:07
Tomas Heligr-Pyke
What's it. No, I we made my dad put another plastic thing. Good. But I'm worried that it's going to happen again.
00:19:35:09 - 00:19:39:11
Dave Quak
But you got to count your blessings. Like what? I've got a car. Yeah, you got your car. You can.
00:19:39:11 - 00:19:40:10
Tomas Heligr-Pyke
Drive so.
00:19:40:11 - 00:19:43:03
Dave Quak
You can buy two business cars because you got two businesses going.
00:19:43:03 - 00:19:45:22
Tomas Heligr-Pyke
Yeah, that was money for that. But yes.
00:19:45:24 - 00:20:07:18
Dave Quak
But even your family, I met them, they're lovely. Like, I think you need a hardship. We do need to be considerate of the grateful things. But one thing I can see, man, is that your relationship with God is deepening, deepening, deepening all the time. What is someone like you do for you? Like spiritual rhythms? Tell. Like, what's your sort of like way of connecting with God through the week or through the day?
00:20:07:20 - 00:20:10:13
Dave Quak
What's that look like?
00:20:10:15 - 00:20:35:19
Tomas Heligr-Pyke
Oh, that's an interesting one. My, because I know people that do very traditional things, but they have to I do give them a specific sense to pray, like, yeah, you little, hands together. Yeah, yeah. So so like that. And that's how they do it. But I'm very much so. Oh, Jesus loves me. And I see Jesus and God as, like in my mind, a very good friend.
00:20:35:19 - 00:20:49:13
Tomas Heligr-Pyke
Like a best friend. Yeah. So I talk to God like he's my best friend. I say, okay, I got this is what's happening. Help me out here. I know I'm an idiot because I've done this. Can you please, just, like, help me get through this? I'm very sorry.
00:20:49:15 - 00:20:50:07
Dave Quak
It's me again.
00:20:50:07 - 00:20:55:03
Tomas Heligr-Pyke
Yeah, it's. It's me again. It's like I'm on a phone call with someone who knows me way too well.
00:20:55:05 - 00:21:01:03
Dave Quak
Yeah, but there's something beautiful in that. So you feel that closeness in, like, you don't feel like there's a wall between access?
00:21:01:06 - 00:21:06:24
Tomas Heligr-Pyke
No. Because. And I like talking to God like that. And I'm sure he likes me talking to him like that. He does. I hope so.
00:21:07:01 - 00:21:07:21
Dave Quak
Now he does.
00:21:07:23 - 00:21:13:12
Tomas Heligr-Pyke
I'll get up to everybody. Has like time. The amount of spiritual phone calls I got for me.
00:21:13:14 - 00:21:18:00
Dave Quak
Like he's like omnipresent and omniscient and all that. So he can handle it. Like. Yeah.
00:21:18:00 - 00:21:18:21
Tomas Heligr-Pyke
Yeah, literally.
00:21:18:21 - 00:21:36:23
Dave Quak
Okay, so for you, it's more of a conversation. Yeah. Your pastor got me on to lectio three, six, five. I don't know if you know what that is, but it's basically like three times a day. If you want, you can stop and play like a 5 to 10 minute or 15 minute devotion thing. Oh, cool. And you just kind of like lay there and it reads you, you know, just sort of like it's like a meditation.
00:21:36:24 - 00:21:56:09
Dave Quak
It says, look, we're going to settle our scattered senses, meditate on this scriptural thought and then go ahead through the day, like, actually, until he got me onto that. Have never done anything structured like that. It's been really good for me. But would you do anything like that, or do you just feel like, more like rolling with.
00:21:56:09 - 00:21:58:00
Dave Quak
It's your style?
00:21:58:02 - 00:22:12:13
Tomas Heligr-Pyke
I feel like rolling with. It's more my style. I think the funny thing about being is software engineers. I really don't like apps. So, yeah, I don't like having any or I don't use them, I don't I.
00:22:12:15 - 00:22:15:02
Dave Quak
Well, what do they say. The builders house is falling down so.
00:22:15:04 - 00:22:31:20
Tomas Heligr-Pyke
Like my, my favorite like joke that I see on Instagram is tech enthusiasts love tech. Tech people that build the tech like have a gun next to their printer. When it makes a noise that doesn't sound right because it's true. Just like I have enough of this every single day, I don't want to go add any more of it.
00:22:31:20 - 00:22:40:20
Tomas Heligr-Pyke
I'm gonna try to go for a walk. But no, I, I know for a fact that if I tried to use it, that I'd use it for like a week and then just go, nah, I like my way.
00:22:40:24 - 00:22:42:01
Dave Quak
Yeah.
00:22:42:03 - 00:22:52:23
Tomas Heligr-Pyke
You're very grounded, but it sounds really interesting. That sounds really cool, because I know that there's a couple of things like that now. Like there's there's, what's a hello?
00:22:53:04 - 00:22:57:24
Dave Quak
Yeah, hello. The Catholics have got that one. Yeah. And they got, like, Mark Wahlberg and all those kids on Nantucket.
00:22:57:24 - 00:23:00:12
Tomas Heligr-Pyke
Chris Pratt's on that now. Yeah, he's from chosen.
00:23:00:14 - 00:23:02:01
Dave Quak
Yeah, the chosen, the Jesus guy.
00:23:02:02 - 00:23:04:18
Tomas Heligr-Pyke
Yeah, yeah. The place. Jesus.
00:23:04:20 - 00:23:05:21
Dave Quak
I met him.
00:23:05:23 - 00:23:06:11
Tomas Heligr-Pyke
Oh. Did you?
00:23:06:12 - 00:23:33:11
Dave Quak
Yeah, mom, I met him. I didn't meet him, but. Oh, maybe I wish I met him. No, he met him over at, the studios. He got, like, a special pass over there, and then they were in line together, and they went to go at the same time. And so he's like, no, you have to go first. Like, Tom, because you're open with your spiritual life and also your mental life, do you find other people who maybe are struggling with anxiety or whatever, come and have a side chat to you like they like Tom?
00:23:33:17 - 00:23:35:06
Dave Quak
This guy understands. Can I have a chat?
00:23:35:07 - 00:23:36:03
Tomas Heligr-Pyke
Oh, no.
00:23:36:06 - 00:23:37:05
Dave Quak
You don't have that.
00:23:37:05 - 00:23:43:15
Tomas Heligr-Pyke
No, I don't know that. Because, like, because I'm a professional dude.
00:23:43:17 - 00:23:44:01
Dave Quak
Yeah.
00:23:44:02 - 00:23:58:13
Tomas Heligr-Pyke
So I don't really, it's weird, but, like, I but I know for a fact that if anyone did ask me, I'd be like, yeah, chat with me right now. It's just that mentoring about business because I do Instagram Stories all the time of, oh, this is how I'm running this bit of this business. This is why I'm doing this.
00:23:58:13 - 00:24:00:00
Dave Quak
You do that. So yeah. I didn't know that.
00:24:00:03 - 00:24:08:15
Tomas Heligr-Pyke
Yeah. So I'm doing a lot of search for me. I'm trying to grow that, because I like helping people in that regard as well. So I've got people ask me for coffee shop chats, so I would I was.
00:24:08:15 - 00:24:10:00
Dave Quak
More the professional at the moment.
00:24:10:00 - 00:24:23:13
Tomas Heligr-Pyke
Yeah. But I would love for people to ask me questions like that I have had in past. People say, oh, so you and, my friend talk to you on the, heard the podcast and talk to me about it. That's how I knew you. And this year.
00:24:23:15 - 00:24:27:10
Dave Quak
There was so much feedback from my last chat. What did you get? What did you get for feedback?
00:24:27:11 - 00:24:44:17
Tomas Heligr-Pyke
Oh, I got one that randomly texted me who I knew from, like a men's group. I think it was the next day and he's like, did you go on a podcast? I was like, yeah, well, what do you mean? It's like some of that. I know just that. Ask me, how do how I know you because you were on a podcast that they listened to.
00:24:44:17 - 00:24:46:22
Tomas Heligr-Pyke
It was like, oh, that's pretty cool.
00:24:46:24 - 00:25:03:06
Dave Quak
Hey, lots of people listen to that one, because I think it was cool to hear from someone who loves Jesus so much and can handle quite, I want to say like a heavy a mental health condition, but it is right. I don't know if there are different categories, but schizophrenia, like when you line them up, that's not the first one you pick.
00:25:03:06 - 00:25:11:01
Dave Quak
No, you know, but I think it's cool that you're open with it. Hey, are you worried about reputational risk coming on a podcast and talking about.
00:25:11:03 - 00:25:35:18
Tomas Heligr-Pyke
It is that's one of the things that is on the back of my mind all the time. But yeah, also I don't care. Like like, yeah, like it's always going to be at the back of my mind because I know that's the thing, because I know that I might, for whatever reason, I know it has in relationships I've had before where like, I meet someone and I talk to them a lot and they'll say, hey, by the way, I wrote this and they're like, oh, okay, bye bye.
00:25:35:20 - 00:25:36:14
Dave Quak
I gotta go to the toilet.
00:25:36:14 - 00:25:58:22
Tomas Heligr-Pyke
Yeah. And then they leave and then they never come back. I was like, wow. They did a really long time on the toilet. But so, so that's always like there is some stigma around that. But also people who've met me know me really well. Yeah, because I don't really hide anything at this point. So and the people that stay, going to stay forever.
00:25:58:24 - 00:26:10:02
Tomas Heligr-Pyke
Yeah. So in my mind, it's like, oh, I might lose a contract because of this, but also I might gain a contract because people are like, wow, you're really open. Yeah. And I trust you more because you're so open.
00:26:10:06 - 00:26:14:17
Dave Quak
I love that, and I think if you're going to lose a contract because of it, you don't want the person who's exactly.
00:26:14:18 - 00:26:16:22
Tomas Heligr-Pyke
Contract because the that shows that character.
00:26:17:00 - 00:26:17:19
Dave Quak
It really does.
00:26:17:20 - 00:26:43:17
Tomas Heligr-Pyke
Because we live in the day and age where people are really, really accepting. There's some people that aren't and bless them. Really. Yeah. Bless them. But it's good that we live in a world where it is like people go through this all the time. People know people that go through this in different forms. Yeah, my one of my best friends is like highly anxious, and I don't think of her any differently.
00:26:43:23 - 00:26:59:09
Dave Quak
That's the point, right? Yeah. What would like. Okay. This is okay. This is awesome. Because I had a run in with a loved one the other day because they refused to accept that I have bipolar because I don't look like I have bipolar. Oh.
00:26:59:11 - 00:27:01:09
Tomas Heligr-Pyke
That's the fun thing. It's a mental. It's a.
00:27:01:09 - 00:27:10:13
Dave Quak
Mental thing. It's not physical. And I couldn't even tell them. You would not even believe how this happened, because we were at a table with someone else who needed a double knee surgery.
00:27:10:17 - 00:27:11:06
Tomas Heligr-Pyke
00:27:11:08 - 00:27:31:17
Dave Quak
And basically, I was making light of the situation and saying, look, look at this table. We've got this guy doing that. And everyone on the table had an island. I listed them all. And then I, you know, I went, you know, this person needs a double me. I've got bipolar, blah, blah, blah. And the person's like, no, you know, and I'm like, I'm pretty sure I do.
00:27:31:17 - 00:27:55:15
Dave Quak
Like, if you know how you don't. And then just made of like, tried to make a joke about suicide and it just it went down in a pile of crap. And also like, there's still that I thought we will be on this, you know, like, where you would like. But at the same time, she would never say to the nay person, you need a double me.
00:27:55:17 - 00:27:56:11
Dave Quak
Like, no.
00:27:56:13 - 00:28:01:12
Tomas Heligr-Pyke
I'll just walk it off.
00:28:01:14 - 00:28:02:07
Tomas Heligr-Pyke
Yeah.
00:28:02:09 - 00:28:09:22
Dave Quak
So I did like. Yeah, yeah. So I did like being open with it. Tamar just reckons the only way we can do it. And if all of us are open, then there's a lot of us open.
00:28:09:24 - 00:28:22:16
Tomas Heligr-Pyke
Yeah, yeah. You know, and and the good thing about Australia at this point, I'm pretty sure, don't quote me, but like, you can't get fired over. No, no, no. Like. And if they do that you go for work I'd visit.
00:28:22:18 - 00:28:25:00
Dave Quak
Oh it'd be epic to get fired over it. Is it.
00:28:25:02 - 00:28:26:15
Tomas Heligr-Pyke
Yes. I'm a free pass. Yeah. Yeah.
00:28:26:15 - 00:28:28:11
Dave Quak
Literally straight to the straight to.
00:28:28:13 - 00:28:41:17
Tomas Heligr-Pyke
The open for. Felt like you're pretty pretty safe in that regard. Yeah. And if people, this is the thing, it took me a long time to learn this, because, you know, I'm only 25. I'm learning.
00:28:41:17 - 00:28:43:05
Dave Quak
Are you 25?
00:28:43:07 - 00:28:44:02
Tomas Heligr-Pyke
Yeah.
00:28:44:04 - 00:28:46:20
Dave Quak
Well, I mean, you don't look old and haggard or anything.
00:28:46:23 - 00:28:48:21
Tomas Heligr-Pyke
But just because obviously I have to be.
00:28:48:23 - 00:28:52:11
Dave Quak
In a business and experience and stuff. I just thought you were way older than that.
00:28:52:13 - 00:28:55:17
Tomas Heligr-Pyke
That's why I keep saying it's very much so a good given thing at that point.
00:28:55:17 - 00:28:57:19
Dave Quak
Sorry I interrupted your story. Keep going.
00:28:57:21 - 00:29:15:15
Tomas Heligr-Pyke
So it took. I'm only 25 and it took me very long time because of, like, the situations I've been in. Friends. But the friends that stay like I used to think, like when I was 21, when I had hardly any friends. Oh, I need to have friends. Because this. And it doesn't matter if they treat me wrong because they're at least a friend.
00:29:15:17 - 00:29:29:21
Tomas Heligr-Pyke
And I had this really weird mental because otherwise I was very alone and a very introvert. I struggle, people know me, but people don't know me. Yeah, so I know struggled to get people around me that know me. Because I usually run, but,
00:29:29:23 - 00:29:31:15
Dave Quak
Yeah.
00:29:31:17 - 00:29:58:05
Tomas Heligr-Pyke
I've also been told that I'm hard to deal with with some of my conversations because I go, I'm very don't get me started on ergodic literature, so I'll just keep going on that. But it made me learn very quickly that the people that stay make the people that didn't stay not worth it. Yes. So the people that actually stick around, like I've got some really good best friends and it's taken me 25 years to get those best friends.
00:29:58:07 - 00:30:12:12
Tomas Heligr-Pyke
And I'm very, very thankful and grateful to have them. But they're going to they're sticking with me through thick and thin. Yes, because that's what friends are for. Yeah. So and I didn't realize that when I was a kid, because when I was a kid, I had no friends or I had very little friends, and the friends I did have weren't really that good friends.
00:30:12:12 - 00:30:15:13
Tomas Heligr-Pyke
And it was like, oh, is this I want friends, but this is all I've got.
00:30:15:16 - 00:30:16:03
Dave Quak
Yeah.
00:30:16:03 - 00:30:27:17
Tomas Heligr-Pyke
And then it's like, now it's like, oh, I'm very glad that I had those people, but I'm glad. I'm even more grateful now that I've got people to understand me. And they do exist and they are around.
00:30:27:19 - 00:31:06:01
Dave Quak
I love that Thomas so special because like, we really are in this crazy environment where there's millions of millions of people within a few hundred kilometers of us, you know, and we really do have to choose who we spend our life with with this stuff. Yeah. You know, I know for myself, like, if I fall, if I'm around people who don't understand me and are already mental, mentally health suspicious, and then also maybe a bit over the top spiritually, which is a funny thing to say as a pastor, but over the top in the sense of trying to like dissect me as a case rather than love me as a person, I'll get tired
00:31:06:01 - 00:31:09:11
Dave Quak
of it, you know? And so I think that's awesome that you got those people.
00:31:09:13 - 00:31:10:04
Tomas Heligr-Pyke
Yeah.
00:31:10:06 - 00:31:33:12
Dave Quak
It is cool, man. I can't even believe this. But bro, that was like already the entire episode time. Do you have any like other like pearls of Tom wisdom before we wind up now before, while you're thinking about that, I just want to encourage any listener who does want to chat to Tom. If you Google his name because it's going to be in the podcast title, it's crazy.
00:31:33:12 - 00:31:35:05
Dave Quak
How do you even say your name? Tom.
00:31:35:07 - 00:31:36:12
Tomas Heligr-Pyke
Thomas. Helga. Pike.
00:31:36:17 - 00:31:43:23
Dave Quak
Yeah. Okay. Helga. I didn't even want to try to pronounce it, but then they'll find your Instagram where you're doing your. Or is that a business name? Instagram.
00:31:44:01 - 00:31:47:12
Tomas Heligr-Pyke
No no no no my my. If you Google me, oh they'll.
00:31:47:12 - 00:31:47:22
Dave Quak
Find you.
00:31:47:22 - 00:31:51:12
Tomas Heligr-Pyke
Right? They'll find me. I like every at the top because I'm good with my own SEO.
00:31:51:12 - 00:31:53:18
Dave Quak
Well, you better be good to see you.
00:31:53:20 - 00:31:57:12
Tomas Heligr-Pyke
But I'm pretty sure the top is Instagram or Facebook.
00:31:57:12 - 00:31:58:11
Dave Quak
Yeah.
00:31:58:13 - 00:32:01:15
Tomas Heligr-Pyke
And then your podcast is actually like the fourth one on the list, which is.
00:32:01:15 - 00:32:02:07
Dave Quak
Like, come on.
00:32:02:07 - 00:32:10:16
Tomas Heligr-Pyke
And then it's always got my business up there as well. So if you Google me, you'll definitely find me. You'll be able to see all sorts of tidbits of my life. Well, that's.
00:32:10:18 - 00:32:15:15
Dave Quak
What I think is cool is before you said, you know, not many people at this point reach out to have chat.
00:32:15:17 - 00:32:16:03
Tomas Heligr-Pyke
Reach out.
00:32:16:04 - 00:32:18:10
Dave Quak
But if people want to reach out, is that cool? Yeah.
00:32:18:10 - 00:32:24:01
Tomas Heligr-Pyke
Yeah, yeah, yeah, literally I love talking. Yeah. And you guys through this podcast like now tomorrow we'll have a part three.
00:32:24:01 - 00:32:46:14
Dave Quak
But I can't even believe that we did that already. But I'm just I don't know, I just feel like I've got an ally in you, Tom. Another person who's willing to start chatting this stuff through from a faith based perspective, from someone who means business for Jesus. So back to the last question. Do you have any last pills of Tom wisdom, Tom, Helga Pike, wisdom?
00:32:46:16 - 00:32:48:11
Dave Quak
Before we roll on out of here.
00:32:48:13 - 00:33:12:11
Tomas Heligr-Pyke
I think the the biggest pearl of wisdom, which I hope and pray that everybody like, believes in themselves is God's always got your back. I I've not seen a situation at all where God's like, let someone just go. Like every single person that I'm friends with or know has gone through so much random stuff, and God's always been there when they've given it to God.
00:33:12:11 - 00:33:33:02
Tomas Heligr-Pyke
Yeah, and God always pulls through and it may and it may not feel like it at the point at the time. But in hindsight, when you go through it and you go through the tough battle and you give it all to God, when you get to the other side, no matter what it is, you're like, oh, I can see how God was working there, and I didn't actually see that beforehand.
00:33:33:02 - 00:33:39:13
Dave Quak
Yeah, I love that. That's really cool, man. Yeah, yeah. Looking back with 2020 vision, I.
00:33:39:15 - 00:33:51:10
Tomas Heligr-Pyke
Yeah, because so many bits in my life were like, why did I go through this? This was horrible. And then five years later I'm like, oh, that's why I went through that. Because that led to this.
00:33:51:10 - 00:33:51:21
Dave Quak
Yeah.
00:33:51:21 - 00:34:03:22
Tomas Heligr-Pyke
It's like, oh, why did that contract die? Oh, because that led to something even better. It was really interesting. And so and it's always the light, like I'm yet to find something that doesn't work that way.
00:34:03:24 - 00:34:09:24
Dave Quak
Oh man, I love that. Tom. It's been an honor yet. We're getting back. You get you'll come back for a part three.
00:34:10:01 - 00:34:10:20
Tomas Heligr-Pyke
Because.
00:34:10:22 - 00:34:18:18
Dave Quak
I can't believe that's over. But could you please honor us and bless us with a prayer and we'll be done. And thanks for coming on. Somebody else, tell them you're the man.
00:34:18:20 - 00:34:59:00
Tomas Heligr-Pyke
Thank you. So good. Something me? Yeah. The heavenly Father. Thank you for everything that you do in everyone's life. Thank you for looking after us through thick and thin. Thank you for being with us. Please. Bless everyone listening to the podcast. Let's dive. Bless me because we know that you're always with us through everything that we may be going through, no matter how tough it may feel in the situation or how tough it might be in the current moment, we know deep down that you're still with us and then you're not going to let us down.
00:34:59:02 - 00:35:08:03
Tomas Heligr-Pyke
Please guide us if we need guidance, and we thank you enough. So grateful that we have you in our lives forever.
00:35:08:05 - 00:35:25:06
Dave Quak
Amen, Amen. Thanks again for tuning in to some boat souls. We're really trying to grow and get the message out there. So if you're able to share this episode or lead people to the website, we'll share the Spotify link. That would be amazing. Otherwise, have the best week and thank you so much for your support.
