13 APRIL 1991, Page 38

This Be The Converse

(after Larkin)

They buck you up, your mum and dad, Or if they don't they clearly should. No decent parents let the bad They've handed on defeat the good.

Forebears you reckon daft old farts, Bucked up in their turn by a creed Whose homely mixture warmed their hearts, Were just the counsellors you need.

Life is no continental shelf: It lifts and falls as mountains do.

So, if you have some kids yourself, They could reach higher ground than you.

Richard Kell