Sadness only needs a few words to announce itself. I think I heard some of the saddest today. Six austere, plain words, with a collective and depthless potency far beyond their individual simplicity - "I can't make you love me". How hard is that for any of us to realise, let alone say. It's the voice of a desolate heart speaking. The clouds have shifted and now it's clear, that a cherished hope can go no further, it's too deep in the sand of someone else's indifference, their reluctance, their obstinacy, or just their wish to keep things on a cooler heat.

These words sneaked into me one by one, fragments of a song playing very softly in a bookshop. I wish knew who the singer was, even the name of the song. This is almost the oath of membership for a club no one wants to be a member of.