A few days ago, I lost a very dear friend, who had fought bravely against his cancer. At his funeral, the overwhelming and repeating feature of tributes was of a life lived to the full; being a good and true friend, working hard, playing hard, having adventures and being a wonderful father and husband. It is true to say he died far too early but the quote from Abraham Lincoln is very apt.

In the end we almost all fail, routinely and repeatedly; and failure, properly handled, is one of the best teachers life can send us.

“If at first you don’t succeed” was always a terrible adage.

Trying repeatedly does not necessarily lead to success. Failure is telling us something, and you should notice when it gets insistent.

Try something different; somewhere different; someone different.

Failure weeds out what doesn’t work to give air and space to what does.

Apply that within one life – your own – and you will see the redeeming power of failure, if only an individual will respond to it with sufficient ruthlessness.

Be ready to junk what isn’t working.

Life is short.

Bridge Q&A from Christine Tomkin, EBU teacher and producer of The Bridge Quiz Challenge Cards, which are perfect for reminding yourself of some of the rules of Bridge!

I am reading this book by Amor Towles and would highly recommend it – a delight.

This talented actress is playing the lead role in the BBC 3 series – Confessions of an Ibiza Drug Mule – definitely worth a watch.

“Bridge is a card game played by 220 million people worldwide and one in fifteen people in the UK alone. It is one of the world’s favourite pastimes and is currently enjoying a resurgence of popularity. In places like China and Poland, it now forms part of the National Curriculum and research suggests that, among many other positive benefits, regular games of bridge help to stave off degenerative diseases as you get older.”
Andrew Robson