Adapted from Robert Whitcomb’s “Digital Diary,’’ in GoLocal24.com

For the first time in quite a while, I encountered a nun, in a traditional habit, the other day, at the main Providence Post Office. She had a beatific smile.

When I was growing up in the Boston area, or even when I lived and worked in New York City, it seemed that nuns in habits were everywhere, connected to parishes, teaching school, acting as nurses and so on. Whether or not you agreed with their theology, they had edifying roles in society. A few, especially in some parochial schools, were battle-axes but most were kindly. I miss them. Of course, we used to call them penguins.

There are far fewer nuns these days but more than you might think because many have stopped wearing habits.