To reassert the liveliness of ordinary things, precisely in the face of what is hardest and most broken in life and society — this has been Michael Longley’s gift to Northern Ireland as one of its foremost living poets. He is a voice for all of us now, wise and winsome about the force of words in a society that has moved away from sectarianism in living memory. The Good Friday Agreement was signed 20 years ago this month, and social healing is ongoing work to this day.

Social media gets a bad rap for perpetuating vitriol and echo chambers, but it can also be an platform for our common and civic life — helping us understand people with different backgrounds and opinions, while also allowing us to create communities of our own.