| The first excerpt represents the past or something you must release, and is drawn from Fairy Tales by Hans Christian Andersen: beautiful garden of their home. Near the green lawn papa's walking-stick was
tied, and for the little ones it seemed to be endowed with life; for as soon
as they got astride it, the round polished knob was turned into a magnificent
neighing head, a long black mane fluttered in the breeze, and four slender yet
strong legs shot out. The animal was strong and handsome, and away they went
at full gallop round the lawn.
"Huzza! Now we are riding miles off," said the boy. "We are riding away to
the castle where we were last year!"
And on they rode round the grass-plot; and the little maiden, who, we know,
was no one else but old Nanny, kept on crying out, "Now we are in the country!
Don't you see the farm-house yonder? And there is an Elder Tree standing
Fairy Tales |
The second excerpt represents the present or the deciding factor of the moment, and is drawn from End of the Tether by Joseph Conrad: a breeze had enough strength to tear the placid mask
from the face of the sea. To Sterne, gazing with indif-
ference, it had been like a revelation to behold for the
first time the dangers marked by the hissing livid
patches on the water as distinctly as on the engraved
paper of a chart. It came into his mind that this was
the sort of day most favorable for a stranger attempt-
ing the passage: a clear day, just windy enough for
the sea to break on every ledge, buoying, as it were,
the channel plainly to the sight; whereas during a calm
you had nothing to depend on but the compass and the
End of the Tether |
The third excerpt represents the future or something you must embrace, and is drawn from Faraday as a Discoverer by John Tyndall: far from producing in Faraday either enmity or anger. At the
conclusion of the lecture, he quitted his accustomed seat, crossed
the theatre to the corner into which I had shrunk, shook me by the
hand, and brought me back to the table. Once more, subsequently,
and in connection with a related question, I ventured to differ from
him still more emphatically. It was done out of trust in the
greatness of his character; nor was the trust misplaced. He felt my
public dissent from him; and it pained me afterwards to the quick to
think that I had given him even momentary annoyance. It was,
however, only momentary. His soul was above all littleness and
proof to all egotism. He was the same to me afterwards that he had
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