The person whose world has narrowed still deserves news that treats them as part of the wider one.

When illness, age or circumstance shrinks someone’s daily range, visitors often shrink their conversation to match. Every question becomes about symptoms, sleep and appointments, and the person slowly stops being a participant in anything larger. They still have opinions about the election, the neighbours, the film you saw. Being asked for them is a way of saying that their citizenship in the ordinary world has not been withdrawn.

Next time you visit or ring someone whose world has narrowed, bring one piece of news that has nothing to do with their health and ask what they make of it.