| The first excerpt represents the past or something you must release, and is drawn from Ozma of Oz by L. Frank Baum: as soon as the creature could get its breath, it shouted to the others
to roll away, which they immediately did.
"Now," said Tiktok, "you shall come with us and tell me what
I want to know."
"You'll be sorry for treating me in this way," whined the Wheeler.
"I'm a terribly fierce person."
"As for that," answered Tiktok, "I am only a ma-chine, and can-not
feel sor-row or joy, no mat-ter what hap-pens. But you are wrong to
think your-self ter-ri-ble or fierce."
"Why so?" asked the Wheeler.
"Be-cause no one else thinks as you do. Your wheels make you
 Ozma of Oz |
The second excerpt represents the present or the deciding factor of the moment, and is drawn from The Scarlet Pimpernel by Baroness Emmuska Orczy: friendship. You and she will have much to say to one another, I vow.
Every compatriot of Lady Blakeney's is doubly welcome for her
sake. . .her friends are our friends. . .her enemies, the enemies of
England."
Marguerite's blue eyes had twinkled with merriment at this
gracious speech from her exalted friend. The Comtesse de Tournay, who
lately had so flagrantly insulted her, was here receiving a public
lesson, at which Marguerite could not help but rejoice. But the
Comtesse, for whom respect of royalty amounted almost to a religion,
was too well-schooled in courtly etiquette to show the slightest sign
of embarrassment, as the two ladies curtsied ceremoniously to one
 The Scarlet Pimpernel |
The third excerpt represents the future or something you must embrace, and is drawn from The Shadow Line by Joseph Conrad: "But, Ransome," I said. "I hate the idea of
parting with you."
"I must go," he broke in. "I have a right!"
. . . He gasped and a look of almost savage de-
termination passed over his face. For an instant
he was another being. And I saw under the worth
and the comeliness of the man the humble reality
of things. Life was a boon to him--this precarious
hard life, and he was thoroughly alarmed about
himself.
"Of course I shall pay you off if you wish it," I
 The Shadow Line |