| The first excerpt represents the past or something you must release, and is drawn from Michael Strogoff by Jules Verne: cry which penetrated to the depths of his soul, and these two
words rushed into his ear: "My son!"
His mother, the old woman Marfa, was before him!
Trembling, she smiled upon him. She stretched forth her
arms to him. Michael Strogoff arose. He was about to
throw himself --
The thought of duty, the serious danger for his mother
and himself in this unfortunate meeting, suddenly stopped
him, and such was his command over himself that not a
muscle of his face moved. There were twenty people in the
public room. Among them were, perhaps, spies, and was
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The second excerpt represents the present or the deciding factor of the moment, and is drawn from The Memorabilia by Xenophon: instruct their fellow-citizens as to their interests are least likely
to become partisans of violence. They are too well aware that to
violence attach enmities and dangers, whereas results as good may be
obtained by persuasion safely and amicably. For the victim of violence
hates with vindictiveness as one from whom something precious has been
stolen, while the willing subject of persuasion is ready to kiss the
hand which has done him a service. Hence compulsion is not the method
of him who makes wisdom his study, but of him who wields power
untempered by reflection. Once more: the man who ventures on violence
needs the support of many to fight his battles, while he whose
strength lies in persuasiveness triumphs single-handed, for he is
The Memorabilia |
The third excerpt represents the future or something you must embrace, and is drawn from The Varieties of Religious Experience by William James: elsewhere, nature shows continuous differences, and generation
and regeneration are matters of degree.
All which denial of two objective classes of human beings
separated by a chasm must not leave us blind to the extraordinary
momentousness of the fact of his conversion to the individual
himself who gets converted. There are higher and lower limits of
possibility set to each personal life. If a flood but goes above
one's head, its absolute elevation becomes a matter of small
importance; and when we touch our own upper limit and live in our
own highest centre of energy, we may call ourselves saved, no
matter how much higher some one else's centre may be. A small
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