| The first excerpt represents the element of Air. It speaks of mental influences and the process of thought, and is drawn from Twenty Years After by Alexandre Dumas: It was a dull, foggy night. A neighboring church clock
slowly struck the hour. The flickering light of the two
candles showed fitful phantom shadows in the lofty room.
These were the ancestors of Charles, standing back dimly in
their tarnished frames.
An awful sadness enveloped the heart of Charles. He buried
his brow in his hands and thought of the world, so beautiful
when one is about to leave it; of the caresses of children,
so pleasing and so sweet, especially when one is parting
from his children never to see them again; then of his wife,
the noble and courageous woman who had sustained him to the
Twenty Years After |
The second excerpt represents the element of Fire. It speaks of emotional influences and base passions, and is drawn from A Second Home by Honore de Balzac: in a little green velvet bag, if he laughed as he looked at a relic
such as usually is attached to this means of grace, Angelique would
gently take the rosary out of his hands and replace it in the bag
without a word, putting it away at once. When, now and then, Granville
was so bold as to make mischievous remarks as to certain religious
practices, the pretty girl listened to him with the obstinate smile of
assurance.
"You must either believe nothing, or believe everything the Church
teaches," she would say. "Would you wish to have a woman without a
religion as the mother of your children?--No.--What man may dare judge
as between disbelievers and God? And how can I then blame what the
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| The third excerpt represents the element of Water. It speaks of pure spiritual influences and feelings of love, and is drawn from The Witch, et. al by Anton Chekhov: take the post? Are you going to take it, pray, you?
The postman opened his eyes again, looked at the play of the
dimples on Raissa's face, remembered where he was, and understood
Savely. The thought that he had to go out into the cold darkness
sent a chill shudder all down him, and he winced.
"I might sleep another five minutes," he said, yawning. "I shall
be late, anyway. . . ."
"We might be just in time," came a voice from the outer room.
"All days are not alike; the train may be late for a bit of
luck."
The postman got up, and stretching lazily began putting on his
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The fourth excerpt represents the element of Earth. It speaks of physical influences and the impact of the unseen on the visible world, and is drawn from The Passionate Pilgrim by William Shakespeare: As flowers dead lie wither'd on the ground,
As broken glass no cement can redress,
So beauty blemish'd once's for ever lost,
In spite of physic, painting, pain and cost.
XIV.
Good night, good rest. Ah, neither be my share:
She bade good night that kept my rest away;
And daff'd me to a cabin hang'd with care,
To descant on the doubts of my decay.
'Farewell,' quoth she, 'and come again tomorrow:
Fare well I could not, for I supp'd with sorrow.
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