A Lesson in Dying (Inspector Ramsay, 1)

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In 1991, in an article in The New England Journal of Medicine, a doctor from California included this poem, entitled “How Will I Die?”: I’ve often wondered— The great question of life is not, “How do we face life and live in this world?” The real question is the one which is beyond that, in that final exit sign on the motorway of life. The question is: “How will I face death, and where will I live in the next world?”. Taut slice-of-small-town-life police procedural underpinned by the wry premise that unrelenting goodness can be as lethal as evil" Who? 0ld Mrs Bowman, dying of cancer; Clive Stringer, a disturbed adolescent; Theresa Stringer, a single mother with a child in care and a violent boyfriend - or was it someone in her own family?

Well, what, then, are the factors which point to this? And in asking this, we seek to learn a little of certain factors which actually will become apparent in the lives of those around us who are confronted by the actuality of this experience. Not all of them and all the time, not necessarily in this exact way, but certain of these factors, irrespective of a time of the onset of death, will become apparent to the people themselves and to others who are looking on. The Fact of Jacob’s Age Now, at the risk of oversimplification, I want to try and gather this breadth of material under three simple headings concerning Jacob’s passing: first of all, that he knew when he was leaving; secondly, that he knew what he was asking; and thirdly, he knew where he was going.

The Fact of Jacob’s Age

Heppleburn, once a Northumberland pit village, has always been close-knit, friendly and safe - until the murder of headmaster Harold Medburn. Suddenly, the village seems unfamiliar, uncomfortable. All preventable. They knew in 2011 this could happen! Republicans try to blame Democrats. Won't stand up. What Democrats? The GOP has owned this state for the last couple of decades. But, this could easily be told in reverse. My sister, 20'miles from here had nothing and moved in with her daughter who is on the same grid as a hospital and fire station. My son is on the DFW airport and emergency gov't grid, so he lost no power. My friend in Austin is still without power. We have heard nothing from our corgi friend in West Texas. You imagine writing that down? I’m not talking about writing it down out on a football field somewhere in the afternoon where a bunch get together and go, “Hey, you know, well, we’re never going to die, but let’s just put some stuff together.” No, this is somebody looking death in the face and saying, “Incidentally, don’t leave my casket open; just close it up. Be nice though, to have one or two pictures.” It’s difficult expressing all that this life and my future eternal life mean to me. This verse expresses a little of my feelings and my gratitude to God for the life, the family, and the friends he has given me. This story is typical of her later books. Very character based but with a compact group involved they are all brought tolife in the story. The style of writing , although much the same as the more popular later books felt, I thought, less well developed, but eminently readable nonetheless.

In the same way, in verse 1 of chapter 49: “Then Jacob called for his sons and said: ‘Gather around so that I can tell you what will happen to you in the days to come.’” Here’s an old man; his life is ebbing out. Does he really have time for this? Does he really have the energy for this? He has a heightened awareness of the essentials. “I want you to get here, boys, and I want to tell you certain things that are pressingly important.” [9] And again at the end of chapter 49 in verse 29: “He gave them these instructions: ‘I am about to be gathered to my people. This is where I want you to bury me. I want you to know the cave, I want you to know the field, I want you to understand why this important,’” [10] and to that we’ll come, probably next time.

Summary

Ann Cleeves is a gifted recruit to the traditional detective novel and on her current form will continue to command attention"

Certainly not when there is a second strangulation. Two killings are more than a chilling coincidence. A third suspicious death provides a tenuous link between all three and leads Inspector Ramsay to the Alternative Therapy Clinic. Could one of the healers be a killer? The Word of God says, “if you confess with your mouth, [that] ‘Jesus is Lord,’ and [you] believe in your heart that God [has] raised him from the dead, you will be saved.” [18] Saved from what? Saved from sin, saved from the judgment that will fall on sin because it has been borne by Christ, saved from the terrors of death and hell, saved from the fear of the grave, saved unto all eternity. And just where you’re seated this morning, in your own words, and in your own way, why don’t you cry out to God for his mercy and for his grace? Ask him to save you, to forgive your sins, to fill you with his Spirit. Father, hear our prayers as we cry to you in Jesus’ name. Amen. Now it is not an immediately appealing subject, death. It is a very necessary subject, but it remains one of the most removed considerations from late-twentieth-century culture. Indeed, one could argue that we have done our level best over the last fifty years to anesthetize all of us from the actuality of the one event for which we need all to prepare.This rounded off my reading of the Inspector Ramsey series. Requesting interlibrary loans for 3 in this series was well worth it. Hopefully the author and/or the publisher will take the hint and republish this gold mine again. Ann Cleeves's six murder mysteries featuring Inspector Stephen Ramsay were published in the 1990s, and have become collectors items. Like Ann's Vera Stanhope, Inspector Ramsay is based in Northumberland, and the books show all aspects of that multi-faceted county. Ann is the author of the books behind ITV's VERA, now in it's third series, and the BBC's SHETLAND, which will be aired in December 2012. Ann's DI Vera Stanhope series of books is set in Northumberland and features the well loved detective along with her partner Joe Ashworth. Ann's Shetland series bring us DI Jimmy Perez, investigating in the mysterious, dark, and beautiful Shetland Islands...