When somebody is leaving, whether it be the planet, the country or a partnership, it usually brings us to a state in ourselves where we can question those occasions when we were less sensitive to the needs of others than we might have been.

Several years ago I was having a beer with an acquaintance in the Vittoria, a pub in Clifton, Bristol. At the time, his failing relationship meant he stood to lose an awful lot out of the spoils of their joint home being divided. It was a situation…