| The first excerpt represents the past or something you must release, and is drawn from A Drama on the Seashore by Honore de Balzac: a slight pressure of the arm I held and drew toward my heart. It was
one of those nothings of which memory makes poems when we sit by the
fire and recall the hour when that nothing moved us, and the place
where it did so,--a mirage the effects of which have never been noted
down, though it appears on the objects that surround us in moments
when life sits lightly and our hearts are full. The loveliest scenery
is that we make ourselves. What man with any poesy in him does not
remember some mere mass of rock, which holds, it may be, a greater
place in his memory than the celebrated landscapes of other lands,
sought at great cost. Beside that rock, tumultuous thoughts! There a
whole life evolved; there all fears dispersed; there the rays of hope
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The second excerpt represents the present or the deciding factor of the moment, and is drawn from 'Twixt Land & Sea by Joseph Conrad: "What weapons have you on board?"
At one time all the ships trading in the China Seas had a licence
to carry a certain quantity of firearms for purposes of defence.
Jasper answered:
"Eighteen rifles with their bayonets, which were on board when I
bought her, four years ago. They have been declared."
"Where are they kept?"
"Fore-cabin. Mate has the key."
"You will take possession of them," said Heemskirk to the gunner.
"Ya, mynherr."
"What is this for? What do you mean to imply?" cried out Jasper;
'Twixt Land & Sea |
The third excerpt represents the future or something you must embrace, and is drawn from Confidence by Henry James: widow such a fortune as Mr. Wright's seems magnificent."
"Don't call me such horrible names!" exclaimed Bernard.
"Our friend has certainly money enough and to spare."
"That was all I meant. He once had occasion to allude to his property,
but he was so modest, so reserved in the tone he took about it, that one
hardly knew what to think."
"He is ashamed of being rich," said Bernard. "He would be sure
to represent everything unfavorably."
"That 's just what I thought!" This ejaculation was more eager
than Mrs. Vivian might have intended, but even had it been less so,
Bernard was in a mood to appreciate it. "I felt that we should
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