Shooting Stars: Ten Historical Miniatures

“A single Yes, a single No, a Too Soon or a Too Late makes that hour irrevocable.”

Everything changed because a messenger got tired or a door was left unlocked. History looks like a solid wall. It is really just a series of tiny cracks.

“The miracle of a single night had saved him.”

Balzac spent one night writing a masterpiece to pay off his debts. Sometimes desperation is the only thing that creates true art. He worked until his heart almost stopped.

Captain Scott was so close to the South Pole. He found a Norwegian flag already waiting there. Imagine walking through ice for months only to find out you were second.

Dostoyevsky stood in front of a firing squad. He thought he was dying until a last minute reprieve came. That one minute of terror changed every word he ever wrote later.