Whenever we find ourselves in a difficult situation, we soon begin to imagine that this is somehow all we deserve and therefore all that we should expect. We start thinking about the foolish moves we must have made and the price that must now be paid. Soon we have conjured a tale of woe in which we are the central character. Yet even under such circumstances, one brief, bright, exchange - one comforting, pleasing experience - can dispel a thousand dark and doomy clouds.