--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I could tell from Anna's face that she…" description: "\"“I could tell from Anna's face that she had already told him about dancing in Saint Petersburg and that the memory weighed on her heavily. What monstro..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3b0/colum-mccann-902_dance_i-could-tell-from-anna-s-face-that-she-h_2343809.png" --- # I could tell from Anna's face that she had already told… ![“I could tell from Anna's face that she had already told him about dancing in Saint Petersburg and that the memory weighed on her heavily. What monstrous things, our pasts, especially when they have been lovely. She had told a secret and now had the sadness of wondering how much deeper she might…” quote by Colum McCann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3b0/colum-mccann-902_dance_i-could-tell-from-anna-s-face-that-she-h_2343809.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3b0/colum-mccann-902_dance_i-could-tell-from-anna-s-face-that-she-h_2343809.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3b0/colum-mccann-902_dance_i-could-tell-from-anna-s-face-that-she-h_2343809.png) > ““I could tell from Anna's face that she had already told him about dancing in Saint Petersburg and that the memory weighed on her heavily. What monstrous things, our pasts, especially when they have been lovely. She had told a secret and now had the sadness of wondering how much deeper she might dig in order to keep the first secret fed.”” [Colum McCann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colum-mccann/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Past memories, especially cherished ones, can become burdens that compel us to dig deeper, revealing hidden secrets and lingering sorrow. **In simple terms:** Loved memories can become heavy burdens. Key Takeaway Acknowledge and process painful memories. Themes memory burden secrets loss reflection Mood melancholic reflective Type literary emotional When to use this quote - personal therapy - creative writing - family conversations - historical research Key Concepts psychology nostalgia trauma Questions to Reflect On - What secrets do you keep that shape your present? - How can you transform painful memories into growth? A Different Perspective Risk of becoming trapped in nostalgia, hindering present action. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Dance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dance/) [Heart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/heart/) [Pasts Especially](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/pasts-especially-5681764/) [Petersburg Memory](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/petersburg-memory-5681765/) [Saint peter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/saint-peter/) [Secrets](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/secrets/) [Sorrow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sorrow/) [Tell Anna](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/tell-anna-1619954/) [Told Dancing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/told-dancing-684957/) [Told Secret](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/told-secret-401844/) ## Related quotes > [“HELPING ME You think mr think I was infertile having to tell Anna she... that she..”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gemma-malley/helping-me-you-think-mr-think-i-was-infertile-having-to-tell-anna-she/) [Gemma Malley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gemma-malley/) > [ He \[Gene Kelly\] once told me dancing was a man's game, as much of a sport as baseball itself. And he made us believe… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/liza-minnelli/he-gene-kelly-once-told-me-dancing-was-a-man-s-game-as-much-of-a/) [Liza Minnelli](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/liza-minnelli/) > [When I was eight, I was cast to play Marie in 'The Nutcracker,' and I prepared hard for it. But right before the show,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michaela-deprince/when-i-was-eight-i-was-cast-to-play-marie-in-the-nutcracker-and-i/) [Michaela DePrince](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michaela-deprince/) > [“They danced on the shore in marvelous, civilized, humorous reels in which the old contributed wit when they could not contribute grace, and the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-helprin/they-danced-on-the-shore-in-marvelous-civilized-humorous-reels-in/) [Mark Helprin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-helprin/) > [My mother told me I was dancing before I was born. She could feel my toes tapping wildly inside her for months.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ginger-rogers/my-mother-told-me-i-was-dancing-before-i-was-born-she-could-feel-my/) [Ginger Rogers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ginger-rogers/) > [I was told that when I'm dancing, I give off the feeling of a rainy day.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rain/i-was-told-that-when-i-m-dancing-i-give-off-the-feeling-of-a-rainy-day/) [Rain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rain/) > [I've been invited to do 'Strictly and they told me who I would be dancing with because, apparently, you have to train with them…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-kamara/i-ve-been-invited-to-do-strictly-and-they-told-me-who-i-would-be/) [Chris Kamara](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-kamara/) > [“Henry lifted his head and looked directly at me. I froze where I stood, feeling as if he had just told me a secret…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julianne-donaldson/henry-lifted-his-head-and-looked-directly-at-me-i-froze-where-i-stood/) [Julianne Donaldson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julianne-donaldson/) > [All confidence placed in another is dangerous if it is not perfect, for on almost all occasions we ought to tell everything or to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-de-la-bruyere/all-confidence-placed-in-another-is-dangerous-if-it-is-not-perfect/) [Jean de la Bruyere](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-de-la-bruyere/) > [I swear on St. Francis, the patron saint of all animals.” Seeing Poppy’s hesitation, Beatrix added enthusiastically, “If a band of pirates kidnapped me…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lisa-kleypas/i-swear-on-st-francis-the-patron-saint-of-all-animals-seeing-poppy-s/) [Lisa Kleypas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lisa-kleypas/) > [I believe u so much. i trusted u so much but u told my secret to every one. Why did u told every one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/azgraybebly-joslan/i-believe-u-so-much-i-trusted-u-so-much-but-u-told-my-secret-to-every/) [Azgraybebly Joslan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/azgraybebly-joslan/) > [“once you told a secret it was loose in the world, it was a wild thing”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scott-o-connor/once-you-told-a-secret-it-was-loose-in-the-world-it-was-a-wild-thing/) [scott o'connor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scott-o-connor/) > [“And suddenly, she stops moving and looks straight at me. "I'm in love with everything about you". Her words make me suck in my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tamara-ireland-stone/and-suddenly-she-stops-moving-and-looks-straight-at-me-i-m-in-love/) [Tamara Ireland Stone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tamara-ireland-stone/) > [If I told you my secret, you'd never look at me the same.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/if-i-told-you-my-secret-you-d-never-look-at-me-the-same/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“When he came back, I hid my face within my hands. He said: "Fear nothing. Who has seen our kiss? --Who saw us? The…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pierre-lou-s/when-he-came-back-i-hid-my-face-within-my-hands-he-said-fear-nothing/) [Pierre Louÿs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pierre-lou-s/) ## More by Colum McCann > [Give life long enough and it will solve all your problems, including the one of being alive.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colum-mccann/give-life-long-enough-and-it-will-solve-all-your-problems-including/) [Colum McCann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colum-mccann/) > [“There is something that happens to the mind in moments of terror. Perhaps we figure it's the last we'll ever have and we record…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colum-mccann/there-is-something-that-happens-to-the-mind-in-moments-of-terror/) [Colum McCann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colum-mccann/) > [“The short sharp shock of three thousand mother two hundred mothers. The ones who picked through the supermarket debris for pieces of their dead…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colum-mccann/the-short-sharp-shock-of-three-thousand-mother-two-hundred-mothers/) [Colum McCann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colum-mccann/) > [I'm not so sure that I can teach people how to, you know, write dialogue or create plot or anything like that. But if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colum-mccann/i-m-not-so-sure-that-i-can-teach-people-how-to-you-know-write/) [Colum McCann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colum-mccann/) > [“Once we had filled each other with desire, not remembrance.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colum-mccann/once-we-had-filled-each-other-with-desire-not-remembrance/) [Colum McCann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colum-mccann/) > [“How long ago it was and how strange, but all dead friends come to life again sometimes.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colum-mccann/how-long-ago-it-was-and-how-strange-but-all-dead-friends-come-to-life/) [Colum McCann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colum-mccann/) > [“She would want, instead, to recall him in the air, between layers of cloud. To give him back that ancient dignity.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colum-mccann/she-would-want-instead-to-recall-him-in-the-air-between-layers-of/) [Colum McCann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colum-mccann/) > [Novels are more difficult simply because they are longer and require more juggling, but short stories are closer to perfection, if you can get…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colum-mccann/novels-are-more-difficult-simply-because-they-are-longer-and-require/) [Colum McCann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colum-mccann/) > [It was a silence that heard itself, awful and beautiful.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colum-mccann/it-was-a-silence-that-heard-itself-awful-and-beautiful/) [Colum McCann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colum-mccann/) > [I think one of the biggest political failures, and the biggest social failures, over the past few years has been the failure of empathy;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colum-mccann/i-think-one-of-the-biggest-political-failures-and-the-biggest-social/) [Colum McCann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colum-mccann/) > [“Bits of it floating in the air, he said. "It's like dust. You walk about and don't see it, don't notice it, but it's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colum-mccann/bits-of-it-floating-in-the-air-he-said-it-s-like-dust-you-walk-about/) [Colum McCann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colum-mccann/) > [“He has read whole volumes on the philosophy of nonviolence. How peace had to be understood in all its moral dimensions. The proper coexistence…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colum-mccann/he-has-read-whole-volumes-on-the-philosophy-of-nonviolence-how-peace/) [Colum McCann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colum-mccann/) > [“She’s always thought that one of the beauties of New York is that you can be from anywhere and within moments of landing it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colum-mccann/she-s-always-thought-that-one-of-the-beauties-of-new-york-is-that-you/) [Colum McCann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colum-mccann/) > [I'm of the opinion that the real is imagined and the imagined is quite real. The real is imagined, in the sense that we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colum-mccann/i-m-of-the-opinion-that-the-real-is-imagined-and-the-imagined-is/) [Colum McCann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colum-mccann/) > [“She had that emigrant’s sadness—she would never go back to her old country—it was gone in more senses than one—but she was forever gazing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colum-mccann/she-had-that-emigrant-s-sadness-she-would-never-go-back-to-her-old/) [Colum McCann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colum-mccann/) [Explore all 333 Colum McCann quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colum-mccann/) ## More Dance quotes > [When you go to a club it's not about being black or white or heavy or thick. I'm shaking my ass because I want…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miley-cyrus/when-you-go-to-a-club-it-s-not-about-being-black-or-white-or-heavy-or/) [Miley Cyrus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miley-cyrus/) > [Sing like no one's listening, love like you've never been hurt, dance like nobody's watching, and live like its heaven on earth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-twain/sing-like-no-one-s-listening-love-like-you-ve-never-been-hurt-dance/) [Mark Twain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-twain/) > [I make dance music because I love to dance. But I want to think at the same time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stromae/i-make-dance-music-because-i-love-to-dance-but-i-want-to-think-at-the/) [Stromae](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stromae/) > [I studied all kinds of dance, all types of music. I got good grades. I started hitting the recording studio around 13.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jason-derulo/i-studied-all-kinds-of-dance-all-types-of-music-i-got-good-grades-i/) [Jason Derulo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jason-derulo/) > [I like Sam Smith and Taylor Swift. I love pop music, but I also like Sam Smith's slow songs. That would be more to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maddie-ziegler/i-like-sam-smith-and-taylor-swift-i-love-pop-music-but-i-also-like/) [Maddie Ziegler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maddie-ziegler/) > [I think it's useful to experience other types of dance and other cultures, and the life of a classical dancer these days is certainly…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deborah-bull/i-think-it-s-useful-to-experience-other-types-of-dance-and-other/) [Deborah Bull](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deborah-bull/) > [Everything in dancing is style, allusion, the essence of many thoughts and feelings. The abstraction of many moments.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alvin-ailey/everything-in-dancing-is-style-allusion-the-essence-of-many-thoughts/) [Alvin Ailey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alvin-ailey/) > [I worked a lot in Chicago's theater scene as a fight choreographer. And so I do have a lot of experience in stage combat…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-offerman/i-worked-a-lot-in-chicago-s-theater-scene-as-a-fight-choreographer/) [Nick Offerman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-offerman/) > [“dances with mine as if we’ve been doing this our whole”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/corinne-michaels/dances-with-mine-as-if-we-ve-been-doing-this-our-whole/) [Corinne Michaels](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/corinne-michaels/) > [My body was so instrumental to how I took pictures: it was practically a dance. I used to use my legs a lot; now…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-leibovitz/my-body-was-so-instrumental-to-how-i-took-pictures-it-was-practically/) [Annie Leibovitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-leibovitz/) > [I would rather learn from one bird how to sing than to teach 10,000 stars how not to dance.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-e-cummings/i-would-rather-learn-from-one-bird-how-to-sing-than-to-teach-10-000/) [e. e. cummings](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-e-cummings/) > [If you dance, you dance because you have to. Every dancer hurts, you know.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katherine-dunham/if-you-dance-you-dance-because-you-have-to-every-dancer-hurts-you-know/) [Katherine Dunham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katherine-dunham/) > [I'm not a dancer. Never took a dance class.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chrishell-stause/i-m-not-a-dancer-never-took-a-dance-class/) [Chrishell Stause](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chrishell-stause/) > [Being fit is the easiest part of being a dance professional. I used to just throw on a backpack full of rocks and run…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anton-du-beke/being-fit-is-the-easiest-part-of-being-a-dance-professional-i-used-to/) [Anton du Beke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anton-du-beke/) > [I'm a horrible dancer, but I wanted to record songs that made me want to dance.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-lane/i-m-a-horrible-dancer-but-i-wanted-to-record-songs-that-made-me-want/) [Chris Lane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-lane/) [Browse all 9,682 Dance quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dance/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“I could tell from Anna's face that she had already told him about dancing in Saint Petersburg and that the memory weighed on her heavily. What monstrous things, our pasts, especially when they have been lovely. 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