The friend who can sit beside unfinished chores has made the home more welcoming by arriving.

Hospitality gets expensive when a visit requires a presentable house. If people can only come once everything is tidy, they mostly do not come. The households that need company most, the new parents, the ill, the overwhelmed, become the hardest to visit. A friend who steps over the laundry and sits down has quietly changed the terms. Their ease is what makes the next invitation possible.

Ask to come over this week without giving anyone time to prepare. When you host, leave the mess where it is and put the kettle on.