On the day the contract was to be signed, the buyer pulls out.

Take this situation apart. Each piece goes in one box: yours, or not yours. There is no third box, and almost nothing falls in one piece.

Yours

The day after.The analysis without self-flagellation, the courteous message, the next candidate. Grieve it briefly; that is allowed. Then keep sorting, because the process is yours even when this outcome was not.
The word “almost” you carry around in the days after.“Almost signed” is a story, not a fact; reality knows only yes or no. Whoever keeps living in almost pays interest on something he never owned. Cross out the word and the grieving gets shorter.

Not yours

That the buyer pulled out on signing day.His reasons, his financing, his cold feet: it all played out in his camp, however close it felt. And beware of “almost”: almost exists only in your head. Reality knows only yes or no, and it has just spoken.

The reasoning. The deal was never yours; the process was, and it will still be there tomorrow.

Nearby situations