| The first excerpt represents the past or something you must release, and is drawn from The Young Forester by Zane Grey: blue twilight.
The appalling roar held me spellbound with my foot in the stirrup. It drew
my glance even in that moment of flight.
Under the shifting cloud flashes of red followed by waves of fire raced
through the tree-tops. That the forest fire traveled through the tree-tops
was as new to me as it was terrible. The fire seemed to make and drive the
wind. Lower down along the ground was a dull furnace-glow, now dark, now
bright. It all brought into my mind a picture I had seen of the end of the
world.
Target broke the spell by swinging me up into the saddle as he leaped
forward with a furious snort. I struck him with the bridle, and yelled:
The Young Forester |
The second excerpt represents the present or the deciding factor of the moment, and is drawn from The Prince by Nicolo Machiavelli: his men on their return from victory and personally thank them. He was
also on the watch for any attempt of the enemy to retrieve the
fortunes of the day; he being of the opinion that it was the duty of a
good general to be the first man in the saddle and the last out of it.
Here Castruccio stood exposed to a wind which often rises at midday on
the banks of the Arno, and which is often very unhealthy; from this he
took a chill, of which he thought nothing, as he was accustomed to
such troubles; but it was the cause of his death. On the following
night he was attacked with high fever, which increased so rapidly that
the doctors saw it must prove fatal. Castruccio, therefore, called
Pagolo Guinigi to him, and addressed him as follows:
The Prince |
The third excerpt represents the future or something you must embrace, and is drawn from Phaedo by Plato: certainly heard Philolaus, about whom you were just now asking, affirm when
he was staying with us at Thebes: and there are others who say the same,
although I have never understood what was meant by any of them.
Do not lose heart, replied Socrates, and the day may come when you will
understand. I suppose that you wonder why, when other things which are
evil may be good at certain times and to certain persons, death is to be
the only exception, and why, when a man is better dead, he is not permitted
to be his own benefactor, but must wait for the hand of another.
Very true, said Cebes, laughing gently and speaking in his native Boeotian.
I admit the appearance of inconsistency in what I am saying; but there may
not be any real inconsistency after all. There is a doctrine whispered in
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