We all may have done some sort of exam in our life , could be at school , university , work related or for a vehicle.  No exam is easy in my eyes !  It´s testing our skills , knowledge , mental health and our physical health.  Without knowing we are going through so much ourselves to prepare for it.  Even waking up and having breakfast and getting ready to go for an exam can be a task in itself for some. So how can an exam be easy, we are doing it to tick a box for ourselves or sometimes for someone else . Then after all that if we fail, it is harder than preparing to do the exam. But we only have 2 outcomes, pass or a fail … 50% chance of failing. If we failed ..how did we cope with it?  Maybe we need to start teaching and supporting others by helping them to understand that failing an exam can be a tough experience, but it's also an opportunity to learn and grow. It's not the end of the road; it's a part of the process of improvement and if we do fail what is next !

How to get rich !

There are 2 words in life I love the most!  Hope and Smile .  I thought I will write a little about one today.  HOPE !  I don’t think hope necessarily tick boxes in life; instead, it’s more like a guiding compass than a checklist. It doesn’t complete tasks or achieve goals on its own, but it motivates us to keep going, even when the path is difficult or uncertain. Hope is a quiet yet powerful force—a vision that things can improve, a belief that, even in hard times, there is something better ahead. Someone I know once said hope is a wish , wishing something you want to happen or happening In the roles of mother, daughter, or partner, hope is both anchor and fuel, grounding us in resilience and lifting us with purpose. If we think of life’s “boxes” as the milestones or goals we might aspire to reach. While determination and action are what actually check these boxes, hope is often the force that keeps us working toward them. It’s what fuels us to try again after failure, to start new things, and to pursue meaning even when progress feels slow and never give up.  Well , in many ways, hope is what gives value to those boxes. It fills each goal or milestone with purpose. So while it may not be the thing that ticks off each box, it makes each tick mark worth achieving.

I recently watched a documentary on Martha Stewart . Her life story is indeed a remarkable example of resilience and reinvention. Known for building a billion-dollar lifestyle empire, her journey has been anything but straightforward. Stewart’s career has seen extreme highs and lows, yet she continuously finds ways to bounce back, each time more powerful than before. By the 1980s and 1990s, she had established herself as a household name, publishing books, launching her magazine Martha Stewart Living, and eventually creating a television show. Her brand symbolized taste, elegance, and domestic perfection, appealing to millions who aspired to bring a similar charm to their homes. However , in 2001, Martha faced a major setback when she became embroiled in a scandal involving insider trading. She was convicted and served a five-month prison sentence in 2004. For someone so carefully controlling her public image, this was a devastating blow. Her empire appeared to be in jeopardy, and many thought her career was over. The interesting part here is that , Martha’s approach to her prison time was surprising and showed incredible resilience. She didn’t shy away from her mistakes; instead, she embraced the experience. She took on her sentence with grace and resilience, which became part of her story. It was a powerful example of owning one’s actions and turning adversity into a learning opportunity. Upon her release, many doubted whether Martha could regain her influence, yet she came back stronger than ever. She openly addressed her experience in prison, using it as an opportunity to rebuild her brand from a more authentic and relatable standpoint. Instead of letting the conviction define her negatively, she reinvented herself. She even humorously referred to her prison experience in various interviews, showing that she could overcome shame and rise above criticism.

Why dry October ? Why is not dry April or dry July or dry September ??? In fact, why even do this ? Giving up alcohol for a month ... what box does it tick, in your life ? Looking at times of the year October seems to be a month for some to come to a realization the year is ending and soon before you know it, it will be Christmas. We want to prepare for this , we want to reflect on the year that we had and see what we can do to improve ourselves to end the year in a more positive way maybe ? or a more productive way for some . We start thinking of the new year , what can we change or introduce to our lives to be more happy ? or be more healthy or productive ? Then we start to make changes now . Its October let me be alcohol free and focus and clear my mind to see what else I can do . We want to feel better . In a world where health is becoming the talk of each second .. its making us think of methods to make ourselves better. Even though we are in a more content position we want to do more . thats human nature wanting more , something different or wanting to better ourselves. So we join the others and tick a box for us . Dry October it is . We can also look at it as a fashion , a thing to dom , to say we have done it . It may not bring happiness or make you feel any better than before but by doing so, it makes us feel like we are part of something out there . Something that looks and sounds good . It can be any month or anytime frame but we normally choose to do it January as it a new year beginning , or end of a year October or November preparing for the year end . We hardly do December ... how can we if it is a month of celebration . So even though we may want to do this for the right reasons we tend to choose time that is better for us . It raises some questions for me .. are you doing it for health reasons ? and choosing the time you should be choosing ? or are you merely ticking a box by choosing what others have influenced you ? is this really you ? if so tick a box and do it !