The first excerpt represents the past or something you must release, and is drawn from Walden by Henry David Thoreau: there. I have no doubt that it was a principle they fought for, as
much as our ancestors, and not to avoid a three-penny tax on their
tea; and the results of this battle will be as important and
memorable to those whom it concerns as those of the battle of Bunker
Hill, at least.
I took up the chip on which the three I have particularly
described were struggling, carried it into my house, and placed it
under a tumbler on my window-sill, in order to see the issue.
Holding a microscope to the first-mentioned red ant, I saw that,
though he was assiduously gnawing at the near fore leg of his enemy,
having severed his remaining feeler, his own breast was all torn
 Walden |
The second excerpt represents the present or the deciding factor of the moment, and is drawn from The Voyage of the Beagle by Charles Darwin: discomforts we were obliged to cross the head of a cree
of the sea, in which the water was as high as our horses
backs; and the little waves, owing to the violence of th
wind, broke over us, and made us very wet and cold. Eve
the iron-framed Gauchos professed themselves glad whe
they reached the settlement, after our little excursion
The geological structure of these islands is in mos
respects simple. The lower country consists of clay-slat
and sandstone, containing fossils, very closely related to, bu
not identical with, those found in the Silurian formation
of Europe; the hills are formed of white granular quart
 The Voyage of the Beagle |
The third excerpt represents the future or something you must embrace, and is drawn from Little Women by Louisa May Alcott: what she said, and looked at her with eyes that plainly betrayed
curiosity. All this surprised and flattered her, though she did
not understand it till Miss Belle looked up from her writing, and
said, with a sentimental air...
"Daisy, dear, I've sent an invitation to your friend, Mr.
Laurence, for Thursday. We should like to know him, and it's only
a proper compliment to you."
Meg colored, but a mischievous fancy to tease the girls made
her reply demurely, "You are very kind, but I'm afraid he won't
come."
"Why not, Cherie?" asked Miss Belle.
 Little Women |