Had you walked in his shoes, you wouldn't blame him. Had you lived his life, you might begin to understand. But when you pour your existence into the single answer to a single question, choices become simple.

It has been Alex Salmond's purpose to deliver Scotland to statehood. He won himself a clear shot at the target, just once, and the arrow missed the mark. So what would or could an honest man do next?

Despite the mutterings of his enemies, it is not in Mr Salmond's nature to be the egomaniac ancient who won't let go. He was, once upon a time, a young Turk himself. He knows that the hope of statehood has gone for a fair few years, And he knows that he has become the story.

It's not a bad story. Even if you voted No, grant the First Minister the fact that he has spent his life trying to persuade his fellow Scots to change their minds. More, he has spent his time trying to make them believe in themselves.

Like most, I barely know him. Like some, amid the usual ups and downs of journalism, I like what I know. Mr Salmond understands his own cleverness. He's fun. If you bully, he'll bully back. If you are an honest citizen, wishing that the world was a better place, you could do worse than trust the man and his jokes. A Hearts supporting former RBS type: what could go wrong?

Were it not for Alex Salmond, we would not have had a plebiscite on self-determination. Had it not been for him, those of us who think and feel Yes would not be contemplating the next task. This First Minister got his reputation simply be being smarter - quicker, more witty - than all those stacked against him in endless rows.

The only ill-tempered call I ever got from him, at home one night, was after I wrote something suggesting that Nicola Sturgeon was being held back by his leadership. It was no big deal. "Send a letter to the paper," I said, "And it'll be published if we think it's worth it." Mr Salmond always gets the joke, and then the joke within the joke.

The point about this individual lies not in his enviable political acumen, or in his rhetorical skills, or his sheer humanity. I differ from this character on some basic points of political belief. But he has done more than any in my Scottish generation to think - for he's good at that - about what independence can mean for a small country in a big world.

He thinks hard. He takes his duties seriously. He is bigger than his enemies. He'll be missed.