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A meditation on eyes and the art of seeing
SURVEY OF O P H T H A L M O L O G Y VOLUME 40. NUMBER 5. MARCH-APRIL 1996
TIME
OPH,BENJAMINMILDER,EDITOR A Meditation on Eyes and the Art of Seeing*
I w o n d e r as I view this O.R scene, If Ulysses saw an eye of such prodigious size W h e n he p l u n g e d that b u r n i n g stake Into the Cyclop's unwary eye, As the o n e I see on this Sony screen, That stares at me, glares at m e - though anesthetized-AS its cataract we fix to exorcise.
That they c o u l d n ' t give a fig or leaf, Let alone a tear, that his eyes were torn By the fingers of his own accusing grief and lacerating scorn. W h e n Galileo, with his a u g m e n t e d eye, Did espy the m o o n s of Jupiter dance in apostasy Across an ecclesiastically d a r k e n e d sky, He seized the prior centuries and the Holy See, Stood them on their mitered heads, Said: " S e e - - t h e Truth." Their taut reply Hissed, "Blasphemy !" And f o u g h t him to his aged and recanting knees, But could n o t stay, restrain or deny The dawning o f the heaven's new philosophies.
I think o f Polyphemus and his sightless c o u n t e n a n c e - T h o u g h e n d o w e d with brawn and compelling size as well as bellowing, blind arrogance, Was felled by the cuttings of the mindless F a t e s - How he cursed the plight o f his estate, How he f u m e d and raged and swore As the fluids of his eye did p o u r Like r a m p a g i n g torrents i m p e n i t e n t - A cataract of red from his t o r m e n t e d Brow, to the dusty, cavern floor.
A n d so it goes, as we read the bulletin of ages, Down the eye-chart of history; Peer o ' e r the wisdom and shoulders o f martyrs, Saints and sages, straining to see What their hieroglyphics did confer U p o n tapestries of stone and m o n u m e n t s , Tomes of law and guilded books of prayer; W o n d e r i n g what calligraphy of t h o u g h t or testament Might serve as starlight or wavering candlelight To steer us t h r o u g h the caves and corridors O f night, filled with shades o f d o u b t and b6tes noires.
Some for a straying view or inadvertent Glance, were felled unmercifully: Eyes slammed shut with dark opacity And i n n o c e n c e was n o t valid a r g u m e n t To stay the eclipsing curfew: the perpetual h o o d of night. ASk p o o r T i r e s i a s - - H e knew ! He knew ! Although he then could perceive t o m o r r o w With a more discerning light, He could never see a promise uncurl and grow, Pass from nidus bud, m e t a m o r p h o s e Into a regal, reigning rose.
As we now conclude our surgery, I see an eye redeemed: its clouded lens Exchanged for one, bright and crystalline; A n d I am r e m i n d e d of those blessed few W h o have clearly seen, quietly lived and said: The reason for our d a r k e n e d view Lies n o t within our o p a q u e eye But within our skewed head. There, vanity parades with elongated stride, There, we prance and preen, fail to bide The simple fact, that we are transient dust Spinning on a fragment of a fading star, H o u s e d in a m o m e n t ' s sigh;
As for O e d i p u s - - h i s only sin was to have been born: The rest, the roll of dice, the cast of lots, drawn By those twin courtesans, Chance and Accident, W h o traipsed t h r o u g h the court o f Thebes, so indifferent *In the operating room, cataracts are extracted while viewing the eye through a microscope;the eye as viewed by the surgeon, is seen on a television screen by O.R. personnel and appears as large a.s a basketball. 425
9 1996. Surveyof Ophthalmology. (7 Kent Street, Brookline, MA 02146. Tel: 617-566-2138. Fax: 6174566-4019)
426
Surv Ophthalmol 40 (5) March-April 1996
Derived f r o m cosmic clouds u n b r i d l e d in their tumult W h e n seen f r o m M o u n t Palomar, But seemingly serene w h e n viewed with the n a k e d eye. T h e u n p r a c t i c e d eye is so easily deceived If sense's i m m e d i a c y is all that we perceive.
TIME O P H the eye that sees the least, Is the I o f self-love, that sits at the Feast O f Fools, w h e n Vanity is called, to be the h o n o r e d guest.
But the largest lie of all,
NICHOLAS GIOSA, MD SENIOR STAFF ANESTHESIOLOGIST HARTFORD HOSPITAL, HARTFORD, CT
The 1st Surveyof Ophthalmology Continuing Medical Education (CME) examination was recently mailed. It's not too late for you to sign up. Each examination is valid for 18 months from the date of issuance. With 3 issues of Survey of Ophthalmology beside you for reference (July/August'95, September/October'95, and November/December'95), answer 50 multiple choice questions, geared to enhancing the practical knowledge you receive from reading Survey reviews, and earn 15 AMA Category 1 credits.
Survey's C M E examinations are reasonably priced at $35.00 each. To enroll in the December 1995 and/or June 1996 exam(s), simply fill out the Continuing Medical Education section of the bind-in envelope in this issue, enclose your payment, and return to Survey. (Special Note: The July/August'95, September/October'95 and November/December'95 issues are still available upon request.)
Survey of
TheOphthaJmp!ogy CME Program
TIME
OPH,BENJAMINMILDER,EDITOR A Meditation on Eyes and the Art of Seeing*
I w o n d e r as I view this O.R scene, If Ulysses saw an eye of such prodigious size W h e n he p l u n g e d that b u r n i n g stake Into the Cyclop's unwary eye, As the o n e I see on this Sony screen, That stares at me, glares at m e - though anesthetized-AS its cataract we fix to exorcise.
That they c o u l d n ' t give a fig or leaf, Let alone a tear, that his eyes were torn By the fingers of his own accusing grief and lacerating scorn. W h e n Galileo, with his a u g m e n t e d eye, Did espy the m o o n s of Jupiter dance in apostasy Across an ecclesiastically d a r k e n e d sky, He seized the prior centuries and the Holy See, Stood them on their mitered heads, Said: " S e e - - t h e Truth." Their taut reply Hissed, "Blasphemy !" And f o u g h t him to his aged and recanting knees, But could n o t stay, restrain or deny The dawning o f the heaven's new philosophies.
I think o f Polyphemus and his sightless c o u n t e n a n c e - T h o u g h e n d o w e d with brawn and compelling size as well as bellowing, blind arrogance, Was felled by the cuttings of the mindless F a t e s - How he cursed the plight o f his estate, How he f u m e d and raged and swore As the fluids of his eye did p o u r Like r a m p a g i n g torrents i m p e n i t e n t - A cataract of red from his t o r m e n t e d Brow, to the dusty, cavern floor.
A n d so it goes, as we read the bulletin of ages, Down the eye-chart of history; Peer o ' e r the wisdom and shoulders o f martyrs, Saints and sages, straining to see What their hieroglyphics did confer U p o n tapestries of stone and m o n u m e n t s , Tomes of law and guilded books of prayer; W o n d e r i n g what calligraphy of t h o u g h t or testament Might serve as starlight or wavering candlelight To steer us t h r o u g h the caves and corridors O f night, filled with shades o f d o u b t and b6tes noires.
Some for a straying view or inadvertent Glance, were felled unmercifully: Eyes slammed shut with dark opacity And i n n o c e n c e was n o t valid a r g u m e n t To stay the eclipsing curfew: the perpetual h o o d of night. ASk p o o r T i r e s i a s - - H e knew ! He knew ! Although he then could perceive t o m o r r o w With a more discerning light, He could never see a promise uncurl and grow, Pass from nidus bud, m e t a m o r p h o s e Into a regal, reigning rose.
As we now conclude our surgery, I see an eye redeemed: its clouded lens Exchanged for one, bright and crystalline; A n d I am r e m i n d e d of those blessed few W h o have clearly seen, quietly lived and said: The reason for our d a r k e n e d view Lies n o t within our o p a q u e eye But within our skewed head. There, vanity parades with elongated stride, There, we prance and preen, fail to bide The simple fact, that we are transient dust Spinning on a fragment of a fading star, H o u s e d in a m o m e n t ' s sigh;
As for O e d i p u s - - h i s only sin was to have been born: The rest, the roll of dice, the cast of lots, drawn By those twin courtesans, Chance and Accident, W h o traipsed t h r o u g h the court o f Thebes, so indifferent *In the operating room, cataracts are extracted while viewing the eye through a microscope;the eye as viewed by the surgeon, is seen on a television screen by O.R. personnel and appears as large a.s a basketball. 425
9 1996. Surveyof Ophthalmology. (7 Kent Street, Brookline, MA 02146. Tel: 617-566-2138. Fax: 6174566-4019)
426
Surv Ophthalmol 40 (5) March-April 1996
Derived f r o m cosmic clouds u n b r i d l e d in their tumult W h e n seen f r o m M o u n t Palomar, But seemingly serene w h e n viewed with the n a k e d eye. T h e u n p r a c t i c e d eye is so easily deceived If sense's i m m e d i a c y is all that we perceive.
TIME O P H the eye that sees the least, Is the I o f self-love, that sits at the Feast O f Fools, w h e n Vanity is called, to be the h o n o r e d guest.
But the largest lie of all,
NICHOLAS GIOSA, MD SENIOR STAFF ANESTHESIOLOGIST HARTFORD HOSPITAL, HARTFORD, CT
The 1st Surveyof Ophthalmology Continuing Medical Education (CME) examination was recently mailed. It's not too late for you to sign up. Each examination is valid for 18 months from the date of issuance. With 3 issues of Survey of Ophthalmology beside you for reference (July/August'95, September/October'95, and November/December'95), answer 50 multiple choice questions, geared to enhancing the practical knowledge you receive from reading Survey reviews, and earn 15 AMA Category 1 credits.
Survey's C M E examinations are reasonably priced at $35.00 each. To enroll in the December 1995 and/or June 1996 exam(s), simply fill out the Continuing Medical Education section of the bind-in envelope in this issue, enclose your payment, and return to Survey. (Special Note: The July/August'95, September/October'95 and November/December'95 issues are still available upon request.)
Survey of
TheOphthaJmp!ogy CME Program