To see into the future is indeed a rare gift and to relate what will happen in the year 2080 is interesting. I had spent most of that year on Cloud 9; an exciting place where the Angels, wrapped in their shimmering robes, captured my attention for hours at a time. Still, I didn’t allow for the fact that the Boss had been watching me and I was summoned to appear before him.

"You are now expelled from this paradise to Cloud 7; and if you make good there perhaps you will be allowed to return here in due course.

Now, let me tell you brother, going to Cloud 7 was like being sent to Long Bay, except for the heat. The only heat in Long Bay gaol occurs when the inmates burn furniture during a riot. On Cloud 7 Old Nick had the furnaces at full blast all the time.

When I arrived Nick decided that I was a bit small for furnace fodder and said he had a chore for me to do. You see, he couldn’t understand why Earth was sending him so few souls for his furnaces. Nick instructed me to float down to Earth and find out what was going on.

He supplied me with extra large wings and I made the descent without much trouble, although dodging all the man made satellites wasn’t easy. By the way, I was disguised as a full blooded aborigine and I can assure you by 2080 they were becoming a bit rare.

I was adopted by a white family and the living age had increased by this time. Grandma was 107 years old and Granddad was 110 but he was dead in the front parlor. He had kicked the bucket a few hours earlier. Daughter and son in-law were organizing things while the 12 year old grandson was busy going through his Grandfather’s possessions trying to find some of those sovereigns the old man was always talking about.

Now during my descent to Earth I couldn’t see any cemeteries. This fact was made clear to me when I listened to the daughter speaking on the telephone. She was asking the doctor to come over and do his thing.

The doctor arrived in a one-man jet. He took out a syringe holding a litre of foaming liquid and injected it into Granddad’s backside. I couldn’t believe what was happening. Granddad’s body started to shrink and kept doing so until he was the size and shape of a cricket ball, and just as hard!

The doctor asked about the colour the family wanted and before any of the adults could speak the 12 year old boy said very loudly, "Paint him red". So, the doctor painted him red with instant drying paint, gave him a quick polish, then handed Granddad to his wife. Grandma gave him a peck and placed him on the mantle piece.

Uncle Harry arrived for the evening meal. He took one look at Granddad and mused that this was yet another let down for Old Nick. Just as well he didn’t know about my mission. Of course it now was obvious why Nick was short on fuel for his furnace.

Uncle Harry was a renowned cricketer, a batsman of the first order. He always had his cricket bat with him. As the sun was still up he suggested that his nephew bowl a few leg breaks in the back yard.

The 12 year old was very keen until he realized that he didn’t have a ball. Then it dawned on the boy. He grabbed Granddad from the shelf. His first bowl was a rank full toss and Uncle hit it over the fence into the duck pond. Grandma is still looking for poor old Granddad.

A week later I was again called in to see Old Nick who promised to return me to Cloud 9 providing I could tell what had happened to his supply of human fodder for his furnace. I told him that the Earth was littered with millions of cricket balls which didn’t please him to know that he had been cheated.

Well, I am back on Cloud 9 still taking a sly glance at the Angels. I hear that Old Nick has sent down a working party to collect a few million cricket balls!

King