The first excerpt represents the element of Air. It speaks of mental influences and the process of thought, and is drawn from Dreams by Olive Schreiner: soft! It never spoke, but it laughed and played in the sunshine: and Love
and Life rejoiced exceedingly. Neither whispered it to the other, but deep
in its own heart each said, "It shall be ours for ever."
Then there came a time--was it after weeks? was it after months? (Love and
Life do not measure time)--when the thing was not as it had been.
Still it played; still it laughed; still it stained its mouth with purple
berries; but sometimes the little hands hung weary, and the little eyes
looked out heavily across the water.
And Life and Love dared not look into each other's eyes, dared not say,
"What ails our darling?" Each heart whispered to itself, "It is nothing,
it is nothing, tomorrow it will laugh out clear." But tomorrow and
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The second excerpt represents the element of Fire. It speaks of emotional influences and base passions, and is drawn from Ten Years Later by Alexandre Dumas: defeat from which his bravery or conscience had to suffer.
Raoul, therefore, had, in compliance with the wish of his
father, served obstinately and passively the fortunes of
Louis XIV., in spite of the tergiversations which were
endemic, and, it might be said, inevitable, at that period.
M. de Conde, on being restored to favor, had at once availed
himself of all the privileges of the amnesty to ask for many
things back again which had been granted him before, and
among others, Raoul. M. de la Fere, with his invariable good
sense, had immediately sent him again to the prince.
A year, then, had passed away since the separation of the
Ten Years Later |
The third excerpt represents the element of Water. It speaks of pure spiritual influences and feelings of love, and is drawn from Sons and Lovers by D. H. Lawrence: "But not so much," he said.
"No--no--but I knew we should do it."
And then she recovered her composure, apparently at least.
He sat with his shirt turned back, showing his young throat almost
like a girl's, and the towel in his hand, his hair sticking up wet.
"Twenty guineas, mother! That's just what you wanted to buy
Arthur out. Now you needn't borrow any. It'll just do."
"Indeed, I shan't take it all," she said.
"But why?"
"Because I shan't."
"Well--you have twelve pounds, I'll have nine."
Sons and Lovers |
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 The Koran: is mighty woe!
That is because they preferred the love of this world's life to
the next;- but, verily, God guides not the unbelieving people. These
are they on whose hearts, and hearing, and eyesight, God has set a
stamp, and these, they are the careless. Without a doubt that in the
next life they will be the losers.
Then, verily, thy Lord, to those who fled after they had been tried,
and then fought strenuously and were patient,-verily, thy Lord after
that will be forgiving and merciful.
On the day every soul will come to wrangle for itself, and every
soul shall be paid what it has earned, and they shall not be wronged.
The Koran |