| The first excerpt represents the past or something you must release, and is drawn from The Odyssey by Homer: room and washed themselves.
When the servants had washed them and anointed them with oil,
they brought them woollen cloaks and shirts, and the two took
their seats by the side of Menelaus. A maid-servant brought them
water in a beautiful golden ewer, and poured it into a silver
basin for them to wash their hands; and she drew a clean table
beside them. An upper servant brought them bread, and offered
them many good things of what there was in the house, while the
carver fetched them plates of all manner of meats and set cups
of gold by their side.
Menelaus then greeted them saying, "Fall to, and welcome; when
The Odyssey |
The second excerpt represents the present or the deciding factor of the moment, and is drawn from Several Works by Edgar Allan Poe: Till I scarcely more than muttered: "Other friends have flown before--
On the morrow he will leave me, as my Hopes have flown before."
Then the bird said "Nevermore."
Startled at the stillness broken by reply so aptly spoken,
"Doubtless," said I, "what it utters is its only stock and store,
Caught from some unhappy master whom unmerciful Disaster
Followed fast and followed faster till his songs one burden bore--
Till the dirges of his Hope that melancholy burden bore
Of 'Never--nevermore.'"
But the Raven still beguiling all my sad soul into smiling,
Straight I wheeled a cushioned seat in front of bird and bust and door;
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The third excerpt represents the future or something you must embrace, and is drawn from The Art of War by Sun Tzu: As many as seven hundred thousand families will be impeded in
their labor.
[Mei Yao-ch`en says: "Men will be lacking at the plough-
tail." The allusion is to the system of dividing land into nine
parts, each consisting of about 15 acres, the plot in the center
being cultivated on behalf of the State by the tenants of the
other eight. It was here also, so Tu Mu tells us, that their
cottages were built and a well sunk, to be used by all in common.
[See II. ss. 12, note.] In time of war, one of the families had
to serve in the army, while the other seven contributed to its
support. Thus, by a levy of 100,000 men (reckoning one able-
The Art of War |
