In a life of good fortune, he valued above all the gracious gift of his wife, Nancy.

CNN: President Bush: 'Our whole nation grieves'

Now the election is over, Ramos is proving a gracious loser (though he frets about whether some or all of his good work will be undone) and Estrada a magnanimous winner.

CNN: TIME TO TAKE A BOW

So it was good fortune indeed to be invited to take a brief course in jade identification, given by the gracious Roxanne Tu, Senior Gemologist at Taipei's Museum of Jade Art.

BBC: How to buy jade in Asia