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Being a good host is a skill you must acquire, like anything else. Some people have natural inclinations towards this, but you still have to work to hone it. You have to learn when to offer a beverage, what kind of food to offer, how to make your guests feel at home, and most importantly how to make them comfortable, and almost forget that they're not at home. There's a complex alchemy to hosting. If you've ever read the Iliad or the Odyssey, you know just how much ceremony, ritual, and custom used to go into having someone over, and how important it is.
Hosting someone is a time to showcase your generosity-- to be a mensch, and to mean it. A little goes a long way. That's why it's so disappointing when people fail to do so, especially in this case, when a family let a child suffer just because they were an unexpected guest. Read on for the story.