A crowded refrigerator can conceal how little anyone feels like eating.

Fullness is not appetite. A fridge stocked by worried friends, or by a version of yourself from a better week, says nothing about whether anyone in the house can face a meal. From outside, provisions look like proof that things are being managed. Inside, the food and the ability to eat it are two separate problems, and only one of them is solved by shopping.

If someone you care about is unwell or grieving, ask what they could actually manage rather than filling their kitchen. And if it is your own fridge, one small thing you can eat today is worth more than a week of correct supplies.