| The first excerpt represents the past or something you must release, and is drawn from Youth by Joseph Conrad: night she shifted her ballast into the lee bow, and by
that time we had been blown off somewhere on the Dogger
Bank. There was nothing for it but go below with
shovels and try to right her, and there we were in that
vast hold, gloomy like a cavern, the tallow dips stuck
and flickering on the beams, the gale howling above, the
ship tossing about like mad on her side; there we all
were, Jermyn, the captain, everyone, hardly able to keep
our feet, engaged on that gravedigger's work, and try-
ing to toss shovelfuls of wet sand up to windward. At
every tumble of the ship you could see vaguely in the
Youth |
The second excerpt represents the present or the deciding factor of the moment, and is drawn from Elizabeth and her German Garden by Marie Annette Beauchamp: no weather or roads too bad to prevent my going out if I wish to:
to all my suggestions he responds with the readiest cheerfulness,
and smoothes away all <208> objections raised by the Man of Wrath,
who rewards his alacrity in doing my pleasure by speaking
of him as an alter Esel. In the summer, on fine evenings,
I love to drive late and alone in the scented forests,
and when I have reached a dark part stop, and sit quite still,
listening to the nightingales repeating their little tune
over and over again after interludes of gurgling, or if there
are no nightingales, listening to the marvellous silence,
and letting its blessedness descend into my very soul.
Elizabeth and her German Garden |
The third excerpt represents the future or something you must embrace, and is drawn from Ballads by Robert Louis Stevenson: And far to the rising eve extended the shade of their stems;
And the shadow of Tamatea hovered already at home.
And sudden the sound of one coming and running light as the foam
Struck on his ear; and he turned, and lo! a man on his track,
Girded and armed with an omare, following hard at his back.
At a bound the man was upon him; - and, or ever a word was said,
The loaded end of the omare fell and laid him dead.
II. THE VENGING OF TAMATEA
THUS was Rahero's treason; thus and no further it sped
The king sat safe in his place and a kindly fool was dead.
But the mother of Tamatea arose with death in her eyes.
Ballads |
