| The first excerpt represents the past or something you must release, and is drawn from An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge by Ambrose Bierce: could no longer close them. His tongue was swollen with
thirst; he relieved its fever by thrusting it forward from
between his teeth into the cold air. How softly the turf had
carpeted the untraveled avenue -- he could no longer feel the
roadway beneath his feet!
Doubtless, despite his suffering, he had fallen asleep while
walking, for now he sees another scene -- perhaps he has
merely recovered from a delirium. He stands at the gate of
his own home. All is as he left it, and all bright and
beautiful in the morning sunshine. He must have traveled the
entire night. As he pushes open the gate and passes up the
An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge |
The second excerpt represents the present or the deciding factor of the moment, and is drawn from Within the Tides by Joseph Conrad: nearly up. "I will ask you to give me a passage," said the Editor.
He landed in the morning at the bottom of the garden and found
peace, stillness, sunshine reigning everywhere, the doors and
windows of the bungalow standing wide open, no sight of a human
being anywhere, the plants growing rank and tall on the deserted
fields. For hours the Editor and the schooner's crew, excited by
the mystery, roamed over the island shouting Renouard's name; and
at last set themselves in grim silence to explore systematically
the uncleared bush and the deeper ravines in search of his corpse.
What had happened? Had he been murdered by the boys? Or had he
simply, capricious and secretive, abandoned his plantation taking
Within the Tides |
The third excerpt represents the future or something you must embrace, and is drawn from Seraphita by Honore de Balzac: "I will do all you tell me," she answered, lifting her eyes to his
with a timid movement.
"I cannot be your companion," said Seraphitus sadly.
He seemed to repress some thoughts, then stretched his arms towards
Christiana, just visible like a speck on the horizon and said:--
"Look!"
"We are very small," she said.
"Yes, but we become great through feeling and through intellect,"
answered Seraphitus. "With us, and us alone, Minna, begins the
knowledge of things; the little that we learn of the laws of the
visible world enables us to apprehend the immensity of the worlds
Seraphita |
