I share my time with those in need.

The first fortnight after a disaster, a person is surrounded. Casseroles, messages, cards. By week six the phone has gone quiet and the grinding part has only just started.

Turning up in month two is worth more than turning up in week one and gets a fraction of the credit, because there's no crowd to be part of and nothing dramatic to do. You sit in a kitchen for an hour, mostly talking about something else. That hour is unremarkable to give and, on the other side of the table, is often the week's only evidence that anyone remembered.