There is strength in a smile

Sir, – Until I had to wear a mask in public, I did not realise how often I smiled at strangers and they at me, for various reasons – as a friendly gesture on the footpath, to acknowledge courtesy on the road, to show solidarity with the Irish weather, to show sympathy with cross toddlers.

What a beautiful, non-verbal mode of communication the smile is, and what a pity is it hidden when it is most needed. – Yours, etc,

GRÁINNE O’DONOVAN,