Today's Stichomancy for Matt Damon

The first excerpt represents the element of Air. It speaks of mental influences and the process of thought, and is drawn from Venus and Adonis by William Shakespeare:

But if thou fall, O! then imagine this, The earth, in love with thee, thy footing trips, And all is but to rob thee of a kiss. 723 Rich preys make true men thieves; so do thy lips Make modest Dian cloudy and forlorn, Lest she should steal a kiss and die forsworn.

'Now of this dark night I perceive the reason: Cynthia for shame obscures her silver shine 728 Till forging Nature be condemn'd of treason, For stealing moulds from heaven that were divine; Wherein she fram'd thee in high heaven's despite,

The second excerpt represents the element of Fire. It speaks of emotional influences and base passions, and is drawn from The Country of the Pointed Firs by Sarah Orne Jewett:

its own place."

Mrs. Caplin looked bewildered and blank. "Well, all I know is, last year he worked out some kind of plan so's to parade the county conference in platoons, and got 'em all flustered up tryin' to sense his ideas of a holler square," she burst forth. "They was holler enough anyway after ridin' 'way down from up country into the salt air, and they'd been treated to a sermon on faith an' works from old Fayther Harlow that never knows when to cease. 'Twa'n't no time for tactics then,--they wa'n't a'thinkin' of the church military. Sant, he couldn't do nothin' with 'em. All he thinks of, when he sees a crowd, is how to march 'em. 'Tis

The third excerpt represents the element of Water. It speaks of pure spiritual influences and feelings of love, and is drawn from The Tanach:

1_Samuel 5: 6 But the hand of the LORD was heavy upon them of Ashdod, and He destroyed them, and smote them with emerods, even Ashdod and the borders thereof.

1_Samuel 5: 7 And when the men of Ashdod saw that it was so, they said: 'The ark of the God of Israel shall not abide with us; for His hand is sore upon us, and upon Dagon our god.'

1_Samuel 5: 8 They sent therefore and gathered all the lords of the Philistines unto them, and said: 'What shall we do with the ark of the God of Israel?' And they answered: 'Let the ark of the God of Israel be carried about unto Gath.' And they carried the ark of the God of Israel about thither.

1_Samuel 5: 9 And it was so, that, after they had carried it about, the hand of the LORD was against the city with a very great discomfiture; and He smote the men of the city, both small and great, and emerods broke out upon them.

1_Samuel 5: 10 So they sent the ark of God to Ekron. And it came to pass, as the ark of God came to Ekron, that the Ekronites cried out, saying: 'They have brought about the ark of the God of Israel to us, to slay us and our people.'

1_Samuel 5: 11 They sent therefore and gathered together all the lords of the Philistines, and they said: 'Send away the ark of the God of Israel, and let it go back to its own place, that it slay us not, and our people'; for there was a deadly discomfiture throughout all the city; the hand of God was very heavy there.

1_Samuel 5: 12 And the men that died not were smitten with the emerods; and the cry of the city went up to heaven.

The Tanach

The fourth excerpt represents the element of Earth. It speaks of physical influences and the impact of the unseen on the visible world, and is drawn from Lucile by Owen Meredith:

That the secret, unknown, had gone down to the tomb Into which I descend . . . Oh why, whilst there was room In life left for warning, had no one the heart To warn me? Had any one whisper'd . . . "Depart!" To the hope the whole world seem'd in league then to nurse! Had any one hinted . . . "Beware of the curse Which is coming!" There was not a voice raised to tell, Not a hand moved to warn from the blow ere it fell, And then . . . then the blow fell on BOTH! This is why I implore you to pardon that great injury Wrought on her, and, through her, wrought on you, Heaven knows