| The first excerpt represents the element of Air. It speaks of mental influences and the process of thought, and is drawn from Poems by Oscar Wilde: From his green ambuscade with shrill halloo and pricking spear.
Lie still, lie still, O passionate heart, lie still!
O Melancholy, fold thy raven wing!
O sobbing Dryad, from thy hollow hill
Come not with such despondent answering!
No more thou winged Marsyas complain,
Apollo loveth not to hear such troubled songs of pain!
It was a dream, the glade is tenantless,
No soft Ionian laughter moves the air,
The Thames creeps on in sluggish leadenness,
And from the copse left desolate and bare
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The second excerpt represents the element of Fire. It speaks of emotional influences and base passions, and is drawn from The Light of Western Stars by Zane Grey: through the mountain passes, to a new country where fierce and
warlike Indians menaced his life. He was gentle and good, and of
a persuasive speech. Moreover, he was young and handsome of
person. The Indians were Apaches, and among them he became a
missionary, while always he was searching for the flowers of
gold. He heard of gold lying in pebbles upon the mountain
slopes, but he never found any. A few of the Apaches he
converted; the most of them, however, were prone to be hostile to
him and his religion. But Padre Juan prayed and worked on.
"There came a time when the old Apache chief, imagining the padre
had designs upon his influence with the tribe, sought to put him
The Light of Western Stars |
| The third excerpt represents the element of Water. It speaks of pure spiritual influences and feelings of love, and is drawn from Don Quixote by Miquel de Cervantes: my memory ye deeds of Amadis, and show me how I am to begin to imitate
you. I know already that what he chiefly did was to pray and commend
himself to God; but what am I to do for a rosary, for I have not got
one?"
And then it occurred to him how he might make one, and that was by
tearing a great strip off the tail of his shirt which hung down, and
making eleven knots on it, one bigger than the rest, and this served
him for a rosary all the time he was there, during which he repeated
countless ave-marias. But what distressed him greatly was not having
another hermit there to confess him and receive consolation from;
and so he solaced himself with pacing up and down the little meadow,
Don Quixote |
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 Flower Fables by Louisa May Alcott: their beauty, and they are vain and foolish flowers."
But when he came, all wet and cold, praying for shelter among their
thick leaves, they only laughed and said scornfully, "We know you,
and will not let you in, for you are false and cruel, and will
only bring us sorrow. You need not come to us for another mantle,
when the rain has spoilt your fine one; and do not stay here, or
we will do you harm."
Then they waved their broad leaves stormily, and scattered the heavy
drops on his dripping garments.
"Now must I go to the humble daisies and blue violets," said Thistle,
"they will be glad to let in so fine a Fairy, and I shall die in
Flower Fables |
