The first excerpt represents the past or something you must release, and is drawn from In the Cage by Henry James: and studied it without deciding and with much of the effect of
making our young woman watch her.
This personage, meanwhile, at the sight of her expression, had
decided on the spot. If she had always been sure they were in
danger her ladyship's expression was the best possible sign of it.
There was a word wrong, but she had lost the right one, and much
clearly depended on her finding it again. The girl, therefore,
sufficiently estimating the affluence of customers and the
distraction of Mr. Buckton and the counter-clerk, took the jump and
gave it. "Isn't it Cooper's?"
It was as if she had bodily leaped--cleared the top of the cage and
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The second excerpt represents the present or the deciding factor of the moment, and is drawn from War and Peace by Leo Tolstoy: Pierre's mind was in such a confused state that the word "stroke"
suggested to him a blow from something. He looked at Prince Vasili
in perplexity, and only later grasped that a stroke was an attack of
illness. Prince Vasili said something to Lorrain in passing and went
through the door on tiptoe. He could not walk well on tiptoe and his
whole body jerked at each step. The eldest princess followed him,
and the priests and deacons and some servants also went in at the
door. Through that door was heard a noise of things being moved about,
and at last Anna Mikhaylovna, still with the same expression, pale but
resolute in the discharge of duty, ran out and touching Pierre lightly
on the arm said:
 War and Peace |
The third excerpt represents the future or something you must embrace, and is drawn from Child of Storm by H. Rider Haggard: not too much so.
Heedless of her malice and abuse, she headed off the "Worn-out-old-Cow,"
whom she knew I detested, from my presence. She saw personally to my
bandages, as well as to the cooking of my food, over which matter she
had several quarrels with the bastard, Scowl, who did not like her, for
on him she never wasted any of her sweet looks. Also, as I grew
stronger, she sat with me a good deal, talking, since, by common
consent, Mameena the fair was exempted from all the field, and even the
ordinary household labours that fall to the lot of Kafir women. Her
place was to be the ornament and, I may add, the advertisement of her
father's kraal. Others might do the work, and she saw that they did it.
 Child of Storm |