--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Dearest Cecilia, You’d be forgiven for…" description: "\"Dearest Cecilia, You’d be forgiven for thinking me mad, the way I acted this afternoon. The truth is I feel rather light headed and foolish in your pre..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4f6/ian-mcewan-494_afternoon_dearest-cecilia-you-d-be-forgiven-for-th_2567983.png" --- # Dearest Cecilia, You’d be forgiven for thinking me mad… ![“Dearest Cecilia, You’d be forgiven for thinking me mad, the way I acted this afternoon. The truth is I feel rather light headed and foolish in your presence, Cee, and I don’t think I can blame the heat.” quote by Ian Mcewan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4f6/ian-mcewan-494_afternoon_dearest-cecilia-you-d-be-forgiven-for-th_2567983.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4f6/ian-mcewan-494_afternoon_dearest-cecilia-you-d-be-forgiven-for-th_2567983.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4f6/ian-mcewan-494_afternoon_dearest-cecilia-you-d-be-forgiven-for-th_2567983.png) > “Dearest Cecilia, You’d be forgiven for thinking me mad, the way I acted this afternoon. The truth is I feel rather light headed and foolish in your presence, Cee, and I don’t think I can blame the heat.” [Ian Mcewan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-mcewan/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The speaker confesses feeling light‑headed and foolish around Cecilia, attributing it to heat and affection. **In simple terms:** He feels dizzy and silly near Cecilia. Key Takeaway Accept vulnerability in love. Themes love vulnerability affection Mood tender introspective Type romantic personal When to use this quote - romantic confession - intimate conversation - personal reflection Key Concepts psychology emotion self‑awareness Questions to Reflect On - What does heat symbolize in your emotional state? - How do you express vulnerability to loved ones? A Different Perspective Heat may be an excuse, but deeper emotions are at play. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Afternoon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/afternoon/) [Blame](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/blame/) [Blame Heat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/blame-heat-1665541/) [Cecilia Forgiven](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cecilia-forgiven-1665542/) [Dearest Cecilia](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dearest-cecilia-1665540/) [Feel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/feel/) [Feels](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/feels/) [Foolish](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/foolish/) [Forgiven](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/forgiven/) [Forgiveness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/forgiveness/) [Headed Foolish](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/headed-foolish-1665543/) [Heat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/heat/) [Light](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/light/) [Mad](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mad/) [Thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thinking/) [Truth is](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/truth-is/) [Way](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/way/) [Your presence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/your-presence/) ## Related quotes > [“Dearest Cecilia, the story can resume. The one I had been planning on that evening walk. I can become again the man who once…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-mcewan/dearest-cecilia-the-story-can-resume-the-one-i-had-been-planning-on/) [Ian McEwan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-mcewan/) > [People who feel empowered by your presence become kindred spirits.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wayne-dyer/people-who-feel-empowered-by-your-presence-become-kindred-spirits/) [Wayne Dyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wayne-dyer/) > [To bring up a child in the way he should go, travel that way yourself once in a while. Your children need your presence…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jesse-jackson/to-bring-up-a-child-in-the-way-he-should-go-travel-that-way-yourself/) [Jesse Jackson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jesse-jackson/) > [The key is to become aware of how you are signaling your presence in meetings, conversations, speeches - everywhere you show up. Then you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-morgan/the-key-is-to-become-aware-of-how-you-are-signaling-your-presence-in/) [Nick Morgan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-morgan/) > [Music is what you notice when it's no longer in your presence...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pat-metheny/music-is-what-you-notice-when-it-s-no-longer-in-your-presence/) [Pat Metheny](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pat-metheny/) > [Your presence is a moral poison that would contaminate the most virtuous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emily-bronte/your-presence-is-a-moral-poison-that-would-contaminate-the-most/) [Emily Bronte](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emily-bronte/) > [In Tibetan, authentic presence is wangthang, which literally means, 'field of power'... The cause or the virtue that brings about authentic presence is emptying…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chogyam-trungpa/in-tibetan-authentic-presence-is-wangthang-which-literally-means/) [Chogyam Trungpa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chogyam-trungpa/) > [Dear Lord...shine through me, and be so in me that every soul I come in contact with may feel Your presence in my soul...Let…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-henry-newman/dear-lord-shine-through-me-and-be-so-in-me-that-every-soul-i-come-in/) [John Henry Newman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-henry-newman/) > [Sell your presence and purchase bewilderment.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rumi/sell-your-presence-and-purchase-bewilderment/) [Rumi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rumi/) > [Your presence here is is only a matter of conducting an experiment in limits, reminding yourself of what you aren’t.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jay-mcinerney/your-presence-here-is-is-only-a-matter-of-conducting-an-experiment-in/) [Jay McInerney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jay-mcinerney/) > [Every friendship travels at sometime through the black valley of despair. This tests every aspect of your affection. You lose the attraction and the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/every-friendship-travels-at-sometime-through-the-black-valley-of/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [What’s the point of opening yourself up to your friends if they don’t notice you in your vulnerable state? The point of it all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/esther-earl/what-s-the-point-of-opening-yourself-up-to-your-friends-if-they-don-t/) [Esther Earl](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/esther-earl/) > [You are the stars and the world is watching you. By your presence, you send a message to every village, every city, every nation.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eunice-kennedy-shriver/you-are-the-stars-and-the-world-is-watching-you-by-your-presence-you/) [Eunice Kennedy Shriver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eunice-kennedy-shriver/) > [My sign is Leo. A Leo has to walk with pride. When he takes a step, he has to put his foot down. You…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wesley-snipes/my-sign-is-leo-a-leo-has-to-walk-with-pride-when-he-takes-a-step-he/) [Wesley Snipes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wesley-snipes/) > [When you approach something to photograph it, first be still with yourself until the object of your attention affirms your presence. Then don't leave…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/minor-white/when-you-approach-something-to-photograph-it-first-be-still-with/) [Minor White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/minor-white/) ## More by Ian Mcewan > [“As you will see, we do not believe that artists have an obligation to strike up attitudes to the war. Indeed, they are wise…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-mcewan/as-you-will-see-we-do-not-believe-that-artists-have-an-obligation-to/) [Ian McEwan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-mcewan/) > [You could say that all novels are spy novels and all novelists are spy masters.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-mcewan/you-could-say-that-all-novels-are-spy-novels-and-all-novelists-are/) [Ian Mcewan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-mcewan/) > [I've never had a moment's doubt. I love you. I believe in you completely. You are my dearest one. My reason for life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-mcewan/i-ve-never-had-a-moment-s-doubt-i-love-you-i-believe-in-you/) [Ian Mcewan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-mcewan/) > [“It is shaming sometimes, how the body will not, or cannot, lie about emotions.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-mcewan/it-is-shaming-sometimes-how-the-body-will-not-or-cannot-lie-about/) [Ian McEwan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-mcewan/) > [“While my friends struggled and calculated, I reached a solution by a set of floating steps that were partly visual, partly just a feeling…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-mcewan/while-my-friends-struggled-and-calculated-i-reached-a-solution-by-a/) [Ian McEwan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-mcewan/) > [“Once, on a walk by a river- Eskdale in low reddish sunlight, with a dusting of snow- his daughter quoted to him an opening…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-mcewan/once-on-a-walk-by-a-river-eskdale-in-low-reddish-sunlight-with-a/) [Ian McEwan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-mcewan/) > [“Perhaps it's one of those cases of a microcosm giving you the whole world. Like a spode dinner plate. Or a single cell. Or,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-mcewan/perhaps-it-s-one-of-those-cases-of-a-microcosm-giving-you-the-whole/) [Ian McEwan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-mcewan/) > [Who you get, and how it works out- there's so much luck involved, as well as the million branching consequences of your conscious choice…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-mcewan/who-you-get-and-how-it-works-out-there-s-so-much-luck-involved-as/) [Ian Mcewan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-mcewan/) > [“On Chesil Beach he could have called out to Florence, he could have gone after her. He did not know, or would not have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-mcewan/on-chesil-beach-he-could-have-called-out-to-florence-he-could-have/) [Ian McEwan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-mcewan/) > [It was always the view of my parents...that hot weather encouraged loose morals among young people.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-mcewan/it-was-always-the-view-of-my-parents-that-hot-weather-encouraged/) [Ian Mcewan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-mcewan/) > [I apologize for being obvious, but every time I watch the curtain come down on even a halfway decent production of a Shakespeare play…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-mcewan/i-apologize-for-being-obvious-but-every-time-i-watch-the-curtain-come/) [Ian Mcewan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-mcewan/) > [I would rather be physically disabled obviously than mentally. I would rather be paraplegic than nuts. And it is a terrifying prospect and actually…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-mcewan/i-would-rather-be-physically-disabled-obviously-than-mentally-i-would/) [Ian Mcewan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-mcewan/) > [“Words, as I'm beginning to appreciate, can make things true.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-mcewan/words-as-i-m-beginning-to-appreciate-can-make-things-true/) [Ian McEwan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-mcewan/) > [I couldn't think about novels at all. It seemed the only writing that was appropriate to that horrendous event was journalism, reportage. And, in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-mcewan/i-couldn-t-think-about-novels-at-all-it-seemed-the-only-writing-that/) [Ian Mcewan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-mcewan/) > [I did not kill my father, but I sometimes felt I had helped him on his way. And but for the fact that it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-mcewan/i-did-not-kill-my-father-but-i-sometimes-felt-i-had-helped-him-on-his/) [Ian Mcewan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-mcewan/) [Explore all 496 Ian Mcewan quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-mcewan/) ## More Afternoon quotes > [I didn't grow up thinking of movies as film, or art, but as movies, something to do on a Saturday afternoon.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sydney-pollack/i-didn-t-grow-up-thinking-of-movies-as-film-or-art-but-as-movies/) [Sydney Pollack](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sydney-pollack/) > [My dental hygienist is cute. Every time I visit, I eat a whole package of Oreo cookies while waiting in the lobby. Sometimes she…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-wright/my-dental-hygienist-is-cute-every-time-i-visit-i-eat-a-whole-package/) [Steven Wright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-wright/) > [Honestly, I'm living my fantasy. It's being with my family, preferably on a snowy afternoon with a fire going, cuddled up in blankets, playing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/meredith-vieira/honestly-i-m-living-my-fantasy-it-s-being-with-my-family-preferably/) [Meredith Vieira](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/meredith-vieira/) > [It was a very intense and stressful situation. There was playing in the Johnny-pump (an opened fire hydrant) and the ice-cream man coming around…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jay-z/it-was-a-very-intense-and-stressful-situation-there-was-playing-in/) [Jay-Z](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jay-z/) > [Sunday afternoon is for papers and writing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholas-haslam/sunday-afternoon-is-for-papers-and-writing/) [Nicholas Haslam](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicholas-haslam/) > [I think that if most guys in America could somehow get their fave-rave poster girl in bed and have total license to do whatever…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lester-bangs/i-think-that-if-most-guys-in-america-could-somehow-get-their-fave/) [Lester Bangs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lester-bangs/) > [“If you come at four in the afternoon, I'll begin to be happy by three.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antoine-de-saint-exup-ry/if-you-come-at-four-in-the-afternoon-i-ll-begin-to-be-happy-by-three/) [Antoine de Saint-Exupéry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antoine-de-saint-exup-ry/) > [At five in the afternoon. It was exactly five in the afternoon. A boy brought the white sheet at five in the afternoon. A…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/at-five-in-the-afternoon-it-was-exactly-five-in-the-afternoon-a-boy/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [The shadows in the early morning don't tell much. The shadows rest at that time. So it's useless to gaze very early in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carlos-castaneda/the-shadows-in-the-early-morning-don-t-tell-much-the-shadows-rest-at/) [Carlos Castaneda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carlos-castaneda/) > [“I discovered windows one afternoon and after that, nothing was ever the same.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-spollen/i-discovered-windows-one-afternoon-and-after-that-nothing-was-ever/) [Anne Spollen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-spollen/) > [Look, science is hard, it has a reputation of being hard, and the facts are, it is hard, and that's the result of 400…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seth-shostak/look-science-is-hard-it-has-a-reputation-of-being-hard-and-the-facts/) [Seth Shostak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seth-shostak/) > [What'll we do with ourselves this afternoon? And the day after that, and the next thirty years?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/f-scott-fitzgerald/what-ll-we-do-with-ourselves-this-afternoon-and-the-day-after-that/) [F. Scott Fitzgerald](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/f-scott-fitzgerald/) > [Imagine you are walking down a leafy path…The sun is receding, and you are walking alone, caressed by the breezy light of the late…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/azar-nafisi/imagine-you-are-walking-down-a-leafy-path-the-sun-is-receding-and-you/) [Azar Nafisi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/azar-nafisi/) > [A good umpire is the umpire you don't even notice. He's there all afternoon but when the game is over, you don't even remember…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ban-johnson/a-good-umpire-is-the-umpire-you-don-t-even-notice-he-s-there-all/) [Ban Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ban-johnson/) > [Sometimes in the afternoon sky the moon would pass white as a cloud, furtive, lusterless, like an actress who does not have to perform…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcel-proust/sometimes-in-the-afternoon-sky-the-moon-would-pass-white-as-a-cloud/) [Marcel Proust](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcel-proust/) [Browse all 1,085 Afternoon quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/afternoon/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Dearest Cecilia, You’d be forgiven for thinking me mad, the way I acted this afternoon. The truth is I feel rather light headed and foolish in your presence, Cee, and I don’t think I can blame the heat.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Ian Mcewan" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-mcewan/dearest-cecilia-you-d-be-forgiven-for-thinking-me-mad-the-way-i-acted/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Afternoon" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-mcewan/dearest-cecilia-you-d-be-forgiven-for-thinking-me-mad-the-way-i-acted/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4f6/ian-mcewan-494_afternoon_dearest-cecilia-you-d-be-forgiven-for-th_2567983.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4f6/ian-mcewan-494_afternoon_dearest-cecilia-you-d-be-forgiven-for-th_2567983.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4f6/ian-mcewan-494_afternoon_dearest-cecilia-you-d-be-forgiven-for-th_2567983.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Dearest Cecilia, You’d be forgiven for thinking me mad, the way I acted this afternoon. The truth is I feel…” — Ian Mcewan", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Ian Mcewan", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-mcewan/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Dearest Cecilia, You’d be forgiven for...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-mcewan/dearest-cecilia-you-d-be-forgiven-for-thinking-me-mad-the-way-i-acted/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-mcewan/dearest-cecilia-you-d-be-forgiven-for-thinking-me-mad-the-way-i-acted/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```