27 JULY 1985, Page 30

A new perspective

Short-sighted in youth, Long-sighted in age, The eyes he once screwed up to view the mountains He now screws up to focus on the page: Those far-off sights now beautifully clear; Now difficult the detail, small and near.

What, he wonders, nose to the page, Is that?

Surely some flying creature: Mosquito? Gnat?

Then reads, quite clearly, as the focus changes: 'View at sunset over mountain ranges.'

Michael Cullup