You hear a lot of things about love and its prospects. Some relate to age, gender and the fickle nature of human beings. After many years of being unlucky in love, I got lucky. Or did I? Did I open the door? Let it in?

Is it true that it is so much more difficult for women than men to find love? Or to keep love after first blush? I do not live by statistics, as I know too many people – men, women, of all ages – who make their own news, create their own statistics. I think you need to be brave to find love. You need to let someone get close. You need to open yourself up. You need to ask every single morning, “what can I do to love this person? To show her that she is important to me? To think of her and give her something that she needs?”

It was hard for me to find love. I was terrified. I knew I had to try and be brave.