| The first excerpt represents the past or something you must release, and is drawn from The Wrecker by Stevenson & Osbourne: lagoon, their chief, almost their only pleasure. Often they
fished in the lagoon with good success. And the rest was
passed in lolling, strolling, yarns, and disputation. The time of
the China steamers was calculated to a nicety; which done, the
thought was rejected and ignored. It was one that would not
bear consideration. The boat voyage having been tacitly set
aside, the desperate part chosen to wait there for the coming of
help or of starvation, no man had courage left to look his
bargain in the face, far less to discuss it with his neighbours.
But the unuttered terror haunted them; in every hour of
idleness, at every moment of silence, it returned, and breathed a
|
The second excerpt represents the present or the deciding factor of the moment, and is drawn from The Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass: An American Slave by Frederick Douglass: at my trade. At this time, Anna,* my intended wife,
came on; for I wrote to her immediately after my
arrival at New York, (notwithstanding my homeless,
houseless, and helpless condition,) informing her of
my successful flight, and wishing her to come on
forthwith. In a few days after her arrival, Mr. Rug-
gles called in the Rev. J. W. C. Pennington, who, in
the presence of Mr. Ruggles, Mrs. Michaels, and
two or three others, performed the marriage cere-
mony, and gave us a certificate, of which the fol-
lowing is an exact copy:--
The Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass: An American Slave |
The third excerpt represents the future or something you must embrace, and is drawn from Some Reminiscences by Joseph Conrad: verily believe mine was the only case of a boy of my nationality
and antecedents taking a, so to speak, standing jump out of his
racial surroundings and associations. For you must understand
that there was no idea of any sort of "career" in my call. Of
Russia or Germany there could be no question. The nationality,
the antecedents, made it impossible. The feeling against the
Austrian service was not so strong, and I dare say there would
have been no difficulty in finding my way into the Naval School
at Pola. It would have meant six months' extra grinding at
German, perhaps, but I was not past the age of admission, and in
other respects I was well qualified. This expedient to palliate
Some Reminiscences |
