| The first excerpt represents the past or something you must release, and is drawn from Historical Lecturers and Essays by Charles Kingsley: some person or persons--let them be who they may--men, angels, or
gods--made the sow's ear into the silk purse, and the savage into
the sage--they might have pleaded that they were still trying to
keep their feet upon the firm ground of actual experience. But
while their theory is, that the sow's ear grew into a silk purse of
itself, and yet unconsciously and without any intention of so
bettering itself in life, why, I think that those who have studied
the history which lies behind them, and the poor human nature which
is struggling, and sinning, and sorrowing, and failing around them,
and which seems on the greater part of this planet going downwards
and not upwards, and by no means bettering itself, save in the
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The second excerpt represents the present or the deciding factor of the moment, and is drawn from The Ruling Passion by Henry van Dyke: "But come, now, our friendly pipes are long since burned out. Hark,
how sweetly the tawny thrush in yonder thicket touches her silver
harp for the evening hymn! I will follow the stream downward, but
do you tarry here until the friend comes for whom you were waiting.
I think we shall all three meet one another, somewhere, after sunset."
I watched the gray hat and the old brown coat and long green rod
disappear among the trees around the curve of the stream. Then
Ned's voice sounded in my ears, and I saw him standing above me
laughing.
"Hallo, old man," he said, "you're a sound sleeper! I hope you've
had good luck, and pleasant dreams."
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The third excerpt represents the future or something you must embrace, and is drawn from American Notes by Rudyard Kipling: I went almost directly afterward to a saloon where gentlemen
interested in ward politics nightly congregate. They were not
pretty persons. Some of them were bloated, and they all swore
cheerfully till the heavy gold watch-chains on their fat stomachs
rose and fell again; but they talked over their liquor as men who
had power and unquestioned access to places of trust and profit.
The magazine writer discussed theories of government; these men
the practice. They had been there. They knew all about it.
They banged their fists on the table and spoke of political
"pulls," the vending of votes, and so forth. Theirs was not the
talk of village babblers reconstructing the affairs of the
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