Vern was not really that frightened of the fact of his approaching death.
Even as a young man, he had seen through the temporal 'stick and carrot'  unlikliness that religion was.
"Everything in life is inherently simple" he thought, "Its only man's approach to his living and the need to invent a reason for his existence that had clouded and complicated his life and philosophies." he thought.
"So what are the real possibilities?   There are really only three likely senarios." he pondered.

AS Usual, Central Hawke's Bay District Council has delt with the many concerned submissions against the new rating system, by thanking submitters for their submissions then riding 'rough-shod' over them by ratifying the system as accepted...That is their way of saying, "Sorry, but we need the money"!!

If we leave the matter to take its course, it will, and though there is clearly a majority who did not wish to see the system ratified, it will remain so and we will soon be getting the bill for it.

There is no use moaning about it...Unless you write letters to the media,inform council directly about your concerns and join public protest if it comes to that, you will realise when you get your rates bills that any rights you thought you had in a democracy were just words blowing in the wind without substance...

Just as I predicted CHBDC has taken a small number of comments out of the submissions on the proposed new rates system, and finding that they supported some of the proposals, have steamrollered over the majority which objected to the whole principle of the system, and have ratified it.
Taking $151.oo from our Uniform Annual Charges might be seen as taking the pressure off the changes somewhat, but it is peanuts, compared with what it will cost us individually even just to be tied into servicing the Land Transport rate (The mayor refers to this charge as being 'at one rate' and we need to see if that means a uniform standard charge per ratepayer?)

I can comiserate with our Mayor as I am told that she is in a quandry about the whole mayoralty bit. As council's leader, she was possibly the last to realise how difficult it would be for her to lead council along a different path and I believe that it is all closing in on her somewhat.
In my opinion, her apprenticeship was always within a council that wished to use its tenure and rates to produce projects that sucked up to the aspirations
of the well-heeled and those who felt that they had a divine right to be the ruling class of the district.
They neglected the core facilities to a point where the district operates at considerable enviromental debt and with serious rates blowouts.
Perhaps they have believed that it was a 'cargo cult' situation, whereby at the end of the day, Government would see our plight and ante-up for our necessary
core facility upgrades from the coffers of the enviromental ministry.

On opening his eyes he immediately became aware of a young man sitting in a chair within arms reach of his bed.
He picked the man to be  in his early thirties, and his mind said, almost as if the thoughts were coming from a seperate entity,
"Thirty-three! The age of Christ at his death!"
In his weakened state he could not see clearly at first, but there was a strange familiarity about his visitor.
Vern blinked his eyes several times and his vision cleared.
The visitor had a finely chiseled handsome face and appeared to be regarding him with a look that a dissapointed father might bestow
on an erring son.
"He's a priest come to hear my last confession", thought Vern.

The review of my latest novel, 'The Understanding' in the CHB Mail recently by Simon Pearse, convinced me to submit the book to a professional editting service.    I did so with some trepidation, somewhat fearful that the works would lose some of the subtleties and nuances which I have always considered to be my style.
I need not have worried, as the editting by Heritage Press of Palmerston North was an excellent job. Some four thousand words were shaved from my novel,but I am pleased to say that the story now seems to be enhanced and has not lost anything of its character, humour, or depth.
With Simon having suggested that 'The Understanding" has the potential to become a 'cult classic' I will be pushing it both locally and hopefully offshore as well. My thanks to Simon and CHB Mail.