| The first excerpt represents the past or something you must release, and is drawn from The Sportsman by Xenophon: contract emnities, and reap the fruit of evil deeds, diseases, losses,
death--to the undoing of themselves, their children, and their
friends.[18] Having their senses dulled to things evil, while more
than commonly alive to pleasures, how shall these be turned to good
account for the salvation of the state? Yet from these evils every one
will easily hold aloof, if once enamoured of those joys whose brief I
hold, since a chivalrous education teaches obedience to laws, and
renders justice familiar to tongue and ear.[19]
[16] See "Hellenica Essays," p. 371.
[17] "To depravity of speech and conduct" (whether as advocates or
performers). See Aristoph. "Clouds."
|
The second excerpt represents the present or the deciding factor of the moment, and is drawn from The Mountains by Stewart Edward White: being postmaster, but he had to set up the drinks
because he had hit the Mexican in the stomach.
That was considered a poor place to hit a man.
The entire town of Willcox knocked off work for
nearly a day to while away the tedium of an enforced
wait there on my part. They wanted me to go fishing.
One man offered a team, the other a saddle-horse. All
expended much eloquence in directing me accurately, so
that I should be sure to find exactly the spot where
I could hang my feet over a bank beneath which there
were "a plumb plenty of fish." Somehow or other
|
The third excerpt represents the future or something you must embrace, and is drawn from The Black Arrow by Robert Louis Stevenson: My Lord of Shoreby, ye that writt the letter, wot ye why your man
is ded? But let me rede you, marry not.
JON AMEND-ALL.
He laid this paper on the breast of the corpse; and then Lawless,
who had been looking on upon these last manoeuvres with some
flickering returns of intelligence, suddenly drew a black arrow
from below his robe, and therewith pinned the paper in its place.
The sight of this disrespect, or, as it almost seemed, cruelty to
the dead, drew a cry of horror from young Shelton; but the old
outlaw only laughed.
"Nay, I will have the credit for mine order," he hiccupped. "My
|