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When will the smiles return?

By the end of the pandemic, hopefully soon, we would have all learnt how to smile with our eyes

I wish to present a case in favour of the missing smile. I am on a hunt to find it and bring it back in our lives. I miss smiling, not that I don't smile anymore. Also, I miss looking at the smiles on the faces of others. Once, a smile would suggest love, warmth, and even worked as a greeting at work and play; now, it's hidden behind the mask, for our protection. 
The artists, who've romanced the smile, endlessly, seemed to have lost their muse. What would be the Mona Lisa by Leonardo da Vinci without the mysterious, undecipherable smile? At the recently concluded World Art Fair 2020, Dubai, many smiles on the canvas lay hidden behind the masks - stark reality of the current times. 'Without Features' by artist Mohammed Hussein, oil on canvas painting, expressed the state of the world taking precautionary measures, because of that the disappearance of features and personal identity behind masks.
Yes, we're learning how to communicate differently. Fist and elbow bumps have become the safest and acceptable form of greeting, but they don't reach the eyes, the way smiles do or did. Once, we'd even use the smile as a feature to describe someone, "Oh, the lady with a beautiful smile!" Smiles from children are known to melt hearts and reduce stress, research by experts has proven. Also, smiling is a child's first language. In 2020, sadly, we're missing on this way of expression and hence social connection. There are talks of clear masks, with the mouth visible, making it to the market, however, one needs to accept that we will be, for some time to come, continue to live in a world where hugs will be safe only when exchanged virtually and smiles would mostly lay hidden.
What would happen next? I think the times would compel us to learn to smile with our eyes and voices, and read this language as well. Interestingly, smizing i.e. smiling with your eyes is a neologism that was coined by model Tyra Banks in 2009, which suggests bringing life to the eyes while keeping the rest of the face neutral. But yes, we'll have to keep these emotions real, for studies do indicate that our eyes respond only to true, heartfelt feeling. A study conducted by Ursula Hess, deputy dean for international affairs at the faculty of life sciences, Humboldt University of Berlin, suggests - A real smile does not only move the mouth. Facial muscles-the zygomaticus major and the orbicularis oculi-also contract. The corners of the mouth turn up, and laugh lines appear around the eye. Here's then our chance to smile from the soul, and replace all the blank smiles with the ones that bring true joy to our hearts, and you never know the person looking at you may even synchrosmize (smile back with the eyes)! Now, that's a word to add to the ever-changing vocabulary of 2020. 
By the end of the pandemic, hopefully soon, we would have all learnt how to smile with our eyes and listen to the sound of a smile as well, which experts suggest sound brighter; changes in the shape of the mouth alter the modulation of our voices. Here's then to the unseen deeply felt smiles of 2020. - purva@khaleejtimes.com