But we should realise that in trying to circumvent pain or awkwardness, you don’t get any of the good stuff either: support; kinship; a village.

The phrase “inconvenience is the cost of community” and variations on it – including “loneliness is the price you pay for a life of convenience” and “everyone wants a village, no one wants to be a villager” – have recently gained traction on social media, underpinning debates about personal sacrifice, what we actually ‘owe’ each other, and how... See more