| The first excerpt represents the element of Air. It speaks of mental influences and the process of thought, and is drawn from Madam How and Lady Why by Charles Kingsley: ice itself is full of dirt, of sand and stones, which it may have
brought from hundreds of miles away; and that, as this ploughshare
of dirty ice grubs onward, the nose of the plough is continually
being broken off, and left underneath the mud; and that, when
summer comes, and the ice melts, the mud falls back into the place
where the ice had been, and covers up the gravel which was in the
ice. So, what between the grubbing of the ice-plough into the
mud, and the dirt which it leaves behind when it melts, the
stones, and sand, and mud upon the shore are jumbled up into
curious curved and twisted layers, exactly like those which Mr.
Trimmer saw in certain gravel-pits. And when I first read about
|
The second excerpt represents the element of Fire. It speaks of emotional influences and base passions, and is drawn from Essays of Francis Bacon by Francis Bacon: tribute and tax, laid by consent or by imposing, be
all one to the purse, yet it works diversely upon the
courage. So that you may conclude, that no people
overcharged with tribute, is fit for empire.
Let states that aim at greatness, take heed how
their nobility and gentlemen do multiply too fast.
For that maketh the common subject, grow to be a
peasant and base swain, driven out of heart, and in
effect but the gentleman's laborer. Even as you
may see in coppice woods; if you leave your stad-
dles too thick, you shall never have clean under-
Essays of Francis Bacon |
| The third excerpt represents the element of Water. It speaks of pure spiritual influences and feelings of love, and is drawn from The Song of Hiawatha by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow: Lonely in the sky was Wabun;
Though the birds sang gayly to him,
Though the wild-flowers of the meadow
Filled the air with odors for him;
Though the forests and the rivers
Sang and shouted at his coming,
Still his heart was sad within him,
For he was alone in heaven.
But one morning, gazing earthward,
While the village still was sleeping,
And the fog lay on the river,
|
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 Redheaded Outfield by Zane Grey: pieces. He put his hands over his ears to shut out
some of the uproar. And he watched that little
yarn ball fly and shoot and bound and roll to
crush his fondest hopes. Not one of his players
appeared able to hold it. And Grace had holes
in his hands and legs and body. The ball went
right through him. He might as well have been
so much water. Instead of being a shortstop he
was simply a hole. After every hit Daddy saw
that ball more and more as something alive. It
sported with his infielders. It bounded like a
The Redheaded Outfield |
