| The first excerpt represents the past or something you must release, and is drawn from The Boys' Life of Abraham Lincoln by Helen Nicolay: the 'chartered libertine' of the Executive Mansion." He ran
constantly in and out of his father's office, interrupting his
gravest labors. Mr. Lincoln was never too busy to hear him, or to
answer his bright, rapid, imperfect speech, for he was not able
to speak plainly until he was nearly grown. "He would perch upon
his father's knee, and sometimes even on his shoulder, while the
most weighty conferences were going on. Sometimes, escaping from
the domestic authorities, he would take refuge in that sanctuary
for the whole evening, dropping to sleep at last on the floor,
when the President would pick him up, and carry him tenderly to
bed."
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The second excerpt represents the present or the deciding factor of the moment, and is drawn from Two Poets by Honore de Balzac: father's name should be thus posted up in a place where every carriage
passed.
Every evening, when he closed the ugly iron gate and went up to
Beaulieu to give his arm to Mme. de Bargeton among the dandies of the
upper town, he chafed beyond all reason at the disparity between his
lodging and his fortune.
"I love Mme. de Bargeton; perhaps in a few days she will be mine, yet
here I live in this rat-hole!" he said to himself this evening, as he
went down the narrow passage into the little yard behind the shop.
This evening bundles of boiled herbs were spread out along the wall,
the apprentice was scouring a caldron, and M. Postel himself, girded
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The third excerpt represents the future or something you must embrace, and is drawn from Dream Life and Real Life by Olive Schreiner: A year after; it was early spring again.
The woman sat at her desk writing; behind her the fire burnt brightly. She
was writing a leading article on the causes which in differing peoples lead
to the adoption of Free Trade or Protectionist principles.
The woman wrote on quickly. After a while the servant entered and laid a
pile of letters on the table. "Tell the boy I shall have done in fifteen
minutes." She wrote on. Then she caught sight of the writing on one of
the letters. She put down her pen, and opened it. It ran so:--
"Dear Friend,--I am writing to you, because I know you will rejoice to hear
of my great happiness. Do you remember how you told me that day by the
fire to wait, and after long, long years I should see that all was for the
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