| The first excerpt represents the past or something you must release, and is drawn from Fantastic Fables by Ambrose Bierce: repeatedly ran against a stone wall, endeavouring to butt out its
brains.
"Hold! Hold! thou desperate Object," cried the Dishonest Gain;
"these beautiful private grounds are no place for such work as
thine."
"True," said the Object, pausing; "I have other and better grounds
for it."
"Then thou art a happy man," said the Dishonest Gain, "and thy
bleeding head is but mere dissembling. Who art thou, great actor?"
"I am known," said the Object, dashing itself again at the wall,
"as the Consciousness of Duty Well Performed."
Fantastic Fables |
The second excerpt represents the present or the deciding factor of the moment, and is drawn from Sesame and Lilies by John Ruskin: capacity of noble passion left in our hearts' core. We show it in
our work--in our war,--even in those unjust domestic affections
which make us furious at a small private wrong, while we are polite
to a boundless public one: we are still industrious to the last
hour of the day, though we add the gambler's fury to the labourer's
patience; we are still brave to the death, though incapable of
discerning true cause for battle; and are still true in affection to
our own flesh, to the death, as the sea-monsters are, and the rock-
eagles. And there is hope for a nation while this can be still said
of it. As long as it holds its life in its hand, ready to give it
for its honour (though a foolish honour), for its love (though a
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The third excerpt represents the future or something you must embrace, and is drawn from New Arabian Nights by Robert Louis Stevenson: gesture to resign herself, like one yielding to unqualified
authority.
That afternoon the observatory was finally blinded, a wardrobe
having been drawn in front of it upon the other side; and while
Silas was still lamenting over this misfortune, which he attributed
to the Britisher's malign suggestion, the concierge brought him up
a letter in a female handwriting. It was conceived in French of no
very rigorous orthography, bore no signature, and in the most
encouraging terms invited the young American to be present in a
certain part of the Bullier Ball at eleven o'clock that night.
Curiosity and timidity fought a long battle in his heart; sometimes
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