| The first excerpt represents the past or something you must release, and is drawn from A Start in Life by Honore de Balzac: Having married the daughter of a small inn-keeper, he enlarged his
business, made it a regular service, and became noted for his
intelligence and a certain military precision. Active and decided in
his ways, Pierrotin (the name seems to have been a sobriquet)
contrived to give, by the vivacity of his countenance, an expression
of sly shrewdness to his ruddy and weather-stained visage which
suggested wit. He was not without that facility of speech which is
acquired chiefly through "seeing life" and other countries. His voice,
by dint of talking to his horses and shouting "Gare!" was rough; but
he managed to tone it down with the bourgeois. His clothing, like that
of all coachmen of the second class, consisted of stout boots, heavy
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The second excerpt represents the present or the deciding factor of the moment, and is drawn from The Secret Agent by Joseph Conrad: True wisdom, which is not certain of anything in this world of
contradictions, would have prevented him from attaining his present
position. It would have alarmed his superiors, and done away with
his chances of promotion. His promotion had been very rapid.
"There isn't one of them, sir, that we couldn't lay our hands on at
any time of night and day. We know what each of them is doing hour
by hour," he had declared. And the high official had deigned to
smile. This was so obviously the right thing to say for an officer
of Chief Inspector Heat's reputation that it was perfectly
delightful. The high official believed the declaration, which
chimed in with his idea of the fitness of things. His wisdom was
The Secret Agent |
The third excerpt represents the future or something you must embrace, and is drawn from Barlaam and Ioasaph by St. John of Damascus: body in the earth and restore dust to dust, but thyself abide for
the time to come in this place, holding fast to thy spiritual
life, and making remembrance of me, poor as I am. For I fear
lest perchance the darksome army of fiends may stand in the way
of my soul, by reason of the multitude of mine ignorances.
"So do thou, my son, think no scorn of the laboriousness of thy
religious life, neither dread the length of the time, nor the
tricks of devils. But, strong in the grace of Christ,
confidently laugh at the weakness of these thy foes; and, as for
the hardness of thy toils, and the long duration of the time, be
as one that daily expecteth his departure hence, and as if the
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