| The first excerpt represents the past or something you must release, and is drawn from 1984 by George Orwell: count of the passage of time, if he had felt any interest in doing so,
since he was being fed at what appeared to be regular intervals. He was
getting, he judged, three meals in the twenty-four hours; sometimes he
wondered dimly whether he was getting them by night or by day. The food
was surprisingly good, with meat at every third meal. Once there was even
a packet of cigarettes. He had no matches, but the never-speaking guard
who brought his food would give him a light. The first time he tried to
smoke it made him sick, but he persevered, and spun the packet out for
a long time, smoking half a cigarette after each meal.
They had given him a white slate with a stump of pencil tied to the
corner. At first he made no use of it. Even when he was awake he was
1984 |
The second excerpt represents the present or the deciding factor of the moment, and is drawn from One Basket by Edna Ferber: not look comic.
"I'm crazy about her," said Eugene. "We're crazy about each
other. We're going to be married."
Aunt Sophy listened for the reassuring sound of Adele's spoons
and plates in the kitchen. She came forward. "Now,
listen----" she began.
"I love him," said Julia Gold, dramatically. "I love him!"
Except that it was very white and, somehow, old-looking, Aunt
Sophy's face was as benign as always. "Now, look here, Julia,
my girl. That isn't love, and you know it. I'm an old maid, but
I know what love is when I see it. I'm ashamed of you, Julia.
One Basket |
The third excerpt represents the future or something you must embrace, and is drawn from In the Cage by Henry James: her, and, since she was so familiar with fate, she felt as if the
very nail that fixed it were driven in by the hard look with which,
for a moment, Captain Everard awaited her.
The vestibule was open behind him and the porter as absent as on
the day she had peeped in; he had just come out--was in town, in a
tweed suit and a pot hat, but between two journeys--duly bored over
his evening and at a loss what to do with it. Then it was that she
was glad she had never met him in that way before: she reaped with
such ecstasy the benefit of his not being able to think she passed
often. She jumped in two seconds to the determination that he
should even suppose it to be the very first time and the very
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