Nobody sang happy birthday. The corridors of power in the new parliament didn't buzz with drunken celebrations. The first anniversary of Scotland's devolved government was a sombre affair.
The 129 MSPs and the coalition government all knew it hadn't been the best of years. Somehow the great vision of "new Scotland" had been betrayed by 12 months of petty argument and political gaffes. Yet in the ranks of each party and most of the nation's papers there is a growing sense that the parliament is good thing.
The latest opinion poll shows a third of Scots think the overall performance of Holyrood has been poor. However, it also indicates that 62 per cent believe the parliament should have more powers. It may not have been the best of beginnings, but Scots believe there is no going back. As Labour said in the 1997 election, things can only get better.
The reason for the bad start is simple. Nobody had any experience of setting up a government. Most MSPs were political novices. They entered a parliament that had been designed to be unlike Westminster so they had no model to copy. Everybody from civil servants to political journalists had to find a new way of working.
The MSPs had been elected by proportional representation, the first time it had been used for a major election in Scotland. The result meant Labour could only hold a majority if it formed a coalition government. Virgin political territory was crossed as the Liberal Democrats were successfully wooed.
All of this would have been fine had it not been for two factors the politicians could not control. They were operating in a climate of heightened expectations. Scots had waited decades for some form of government and wanted to be impressed. They were signally unimpressed by the early debates which revolved around the pay and conditions for the new politicians.
Things got worse still when a convicted killer was released from jail because of a legal loophole. The fiasco showed the coalition ministers to be no more effective than their distant London counterparts. Then a series of Labour spin doctors, paid by the public purse, were either sacked or found to be involved in scandalous sexual exploits.
Policy issues like the repeal of Section 28, which banned teachers from representing homosexuality, were handled so ineptly it prompted nationwide outrage. Then it was revealed the budget for the parliament's new home was rocketing from £40 million to £200 million. It is little wonder the people began to despair.
The second factor that undermined Holyrood was the hostile media. Most Scottish newspapers had supported devolution, but on its arrival the tabloids in particular seemed to change their mind. Every cock-up was splashed across the front pages. The cosy relationship between Labour and its faithful newspapers was ruined as ministers were lampooned.
Yet to many this is where the seeds of hope lie. The very existence of the parliament has forced age-old truths to be questioned. If the media no longer treat Labour, the political monolith which has dominated Scotland for four decades, with the respect they once did then they are only following the example of voters. Labour's vote has crashed in the two by-elections held in the last 12 months. Opinion polls show them behind the Scottish National Party.
The parliament has also forced the civil service to question its role. Long happy to run Scotland like a benign colonial outpost, the mandarins now find themselves publicly held to account by ambitious politicians. Similar shocks are being felt through the professions, as long-discussed reform of education, the law and the health service are finally pushed through.
The leading nationalist academic, Tom Nairn, wrote for one paper that it had been a good year for Scotland. Eyebrows were raised when the novelist and arch Tory, Allan Massie, appeared to agree with Nairn. After a year of criticism, Massie said the parliament was a "permanent fixture". He had been convinced by a vote that saw backbench MSPs overturn a government directive.
The poll that showed Scots want more powers also revealed that most voters think the only parliaments that will matter in 20 years' time are the ones in Edinburgh and Strasbourg. It may not have been the best of starts but it promises to be a fascinating journey.