--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Dear Madam Vorsoisson, I am sorry. This…" description: "\"“Dear Madam Vorsoisson, I am sorry. This is the eleventh draft of this letter. They’ve all started with those three words, even the horrible version in..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dd8/lois-mcmaster-bujold-716_apology_dear-madam-vorsoisson-i-am-sorry-this-is_2411445.jpg" --- # Dear Madam Vorsoisson, I am sorry. This is the eleventh… ![“Dear Madam Vorsoisson, I am sorry. This is the eleventh draft of this letter. They’ve all started with those three words, even the horrible version in rhyme, so I guess they stay. You once asked me never to lie to you. All right, so. I’ll tell you the truth now even if it isn’t the best or…” quote by Lois McMaster Bujold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dd8/lois-mcmaster-bujold-716_apology_dear-madam-vorsoisson-i-am-sorry-this-is_2411445.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dd8/lois-mcmaster-bujold-716_apology_dear-madam-vorsoisson-i-am-sorry-this-is_2411445.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dd8/lois-mcmaster-bujold-716_apology_dear-madam-vorsoisson-i-am-sorry-this-is_2411445.jpg) > ““Dear Madam Vorsoisson, I am sorry. This is the eleventh draft of this letter. They’ve all started with those three words, even the horrible version in rhyme, so I guess they stay. You once asked me never to lie to you. All right, so. I’ll tell you the truth now even if it isn’t the best or cleverest thing, and not abject enough either. I tried to be the thief of you, to ambush and take prisoner what I thought I could never earn or be given. You were not a ship to be hijacked, but I couldn’t think of any other plan but subterfuge and surprise. Though not as much of a surprise as what happened at dinner. The revolution started prematurely because the idiot conspirator blew up his secret ammo dump and lit the sky with his intentions. Sometimes these accidents end in new nations, but more often they end badly, in hangings and beheadings. And people running into the night. I can’t be sorry that I asked you to marry me, because that was the one true part in all the smoke and rubble, but I’m sick as hell that I asked you so badly. Even though I’d kept my counsel from you, I should have at least had the courtesy to keep it from others as well, till you’d had the year of grace and rest you’d asked for. But I became terrified that you’d choose another first. So I used the garden as a ploy to get near you. I deliberately and consciously shaped your heart’s desire into a trap. For this I am more than sorry, I am ashamed. You’d earned every chance to grow. I’d like to pretend I didn’t see it would be a conflict of interest for me to be the one to give you some of those chances, but that would be another lie. But it made me crazy to watch you constrained to tiny steps, when you could be outrunning time. There is only a brief moment of apogee to do that, in most lives. I love you. But I lust after and covet so much more than your body. I wanted to possess the power of your eyes, the way they see form and beauty that isn’t even there yet and draw it up out of nothing into the solid world. I wanted to own the honor of your heart, unbowed in the vilest horrors of Komarr. I wanted your courage and your will, your caution and your serenity. I wanted, I suppose, your soul, and that was too much to want. I wanted to give you a victory. But by their essential nature triumphs can’t be given. They must be taken, and the worse the odds and the fiercer the resistance, the greater the honor. Victories can’t be gifts. But gifts can be victories, can’t they. It’s what you said. The garden could have been your gift, a dowry of talent, skill, and vision. I know it’s too late now, but I just wanted to say, it would have been a victory most worthy of our House. Yours to command, Miles Vorkosigan”” [Lois McMaster Bujold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lois-mcmaster-bujold/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. A confession of love tangled with deceit, regret, and the consequences of manipulation, showing how personal ambition can destroy relationships. **In simple terms:** Love mixed with lies leads to regret and ruin. Key Takeaway Own your actions and seek honest love. Themes love betrayal regret power dynamics Mood melancholy confessional dramatic Type narrative emotional When to use this quote - romantic relationships - political intrigue - personal ambition - ethical dilemmas Key Concepts confession manipulation consequence guilt Questions to Reflect On - What would you have done differently? - Can love survive after manipulation? A Different Perspective Honesty may not repair damage already done. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Apology](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/apology/) [Conflict of interest](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/conflict-of-interest/) [Love](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/love/) [Revolution](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/revolution/) [Too late](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/too-late/) ## Related quotes > [“Executive Mansion, Washington, Nov. 21, 1864. 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The presidency is a full-time job and he would… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/reince-priebus/stepping-back-from-running-donald-trump-positions-is-meaningless-from/) [Reince Priebus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/reince-priebus/) > [I am concerned that Donald Trump walks into the White House a walking conflict of interest in violation of the emoluments clause of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katrina-vanden-heuvel/i-am-concerned-that-donald-trump-walks-into-the-white-house-a-walking/) [Katrina vanden Heuvel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katrina-vanden-heuvel/) > [“However, family and friends can be in a financial or emotional conflict of interest with the welfare of an incompetent patient.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edmund-d-pellegrino/however-family-and-friends-can-be-in-a-financial-or-emotional/) Edmund D. Pellegrino > [The president can't have a conflict of interest.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-trump/the-president-can-t-have-a-conflict-of-interest/) [Donald Trump](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-trump/) > [ We learned that President-elect \[Donald\] Trump intends to keep his executive producer title on Celebrity Apprentice. We know he's going to come out later… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-stephanopoulos/we-learned-that-president-elect-donald-trump-intends-to-keep-his/) [George Stephanopoulos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-stephanopoulos/) > [I gave up music criticism because of the increasingly obvious conflict of interest. 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ELIMINATE PAYOFFS IN CLINICS TO PROMOTE VACCINATIONS. It should be illegal for doctors to accept bonuses or other incentives from insurance…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-heartland/solution-1-eliminate-payoffs-in-clinics-to-promote-vaccinations-it/) stephen heartland > [ \[Donald Trump\] has moved to admit that there is a conflict of interest now and he needs to do something. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norman-l-eisen/donald-trump-has-moved-to-admit-that-there-is-a-conflict-of-interest/) [Norman L. Eisen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norman-l-eisen/) ## More by Lois McMaster Bujold > [What you are is a question only you can answer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lois-mcmaster-bujold/what-you-are-is-a-question-only-you-can-answer/) [Lois McMaster Bujold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lois-mcmaster-bujold/) > [Never do yourself, what you can con professionals into doing for you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lois-mcmaster-bujold/never-do-yourself-what-you-can-con-professionals-into-doing-for-you/) [Lois McMaster Bujold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lois-mcmaster-bujold/) > [“It reminded him of that definition of his father's. A weapon is a device for making your enemy change his mind. The mind was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lois-mcmaster-bujold/it-reminded-him-of-that-definition-of-his-father-s-a-weapon-is-a/) [Lois McMaster Bujold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lois-mcmaster-bujold/) > [“I was imagining the most bizarre things befalling you.” “Did they include a six-hundred-pound ice bear and a pirate poet?” “No…” “Then they weren’t…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lois-mcmaster-bujold/i-was-imagining-the-most-bizarre-things-befalling-you-did-they/) [Lois McMaster Bujold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lois-mcmaster-bujold/) > [There is a sad disconnectedness that overcomes a library when its owner is gone.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lois-mcmaster-bujold/there-is-a-sad-disconnectedness-that-overcomes-a-library-when-its/) [Lois McMaster Bujold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lois-mcmaster-bujold/) > [“No, amusing me only, I wonder if they realize how they are used?" "Not a bit. They think they are the emperors of creation."…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lois-mcmaster-bujold/no-amusing-me-only-i-wonder-if-they-realize-how-they-are-used-not-a/) [Lois McMaster Bujold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lois-mcmaster-bujold/) > [“You bastards are on the top of Imperial Lord Auditor Miles Vorkosigan's very own shit list now, you bet. But under what name? Only…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lois-mcmaster-bujold/you-bastards-are-on-the-top-of-imperial-lord-auditor-miles-vorkosigan/) [Lois McMaster Bujold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lois-mcmaster-bujold/) > [“Anyway, if the Cetagandans really wanted to assassinate you, they'd hardly do it here. They'd slip something subtle under your skin that wouldn't go…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lois-mcmaster-bujold/anyway-if-the-cetagandans-really-wanted-to-assassinate-you-they-d/) [Lois McMaster Bujold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lois-mcmaster-bujold/) > [Endure pain, find joy, and make your own meaning, because the universe certainly isn't going to supply it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lois-mcmaster-bujold/endure-pain-find-joy-and-make-your-own-meaning-because-the-universe/) [Lois McMaster Bujold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lois-mcmaster-bujold/) > [Your Reverence, I do not hate any man in this world enough to inflict the results of my prayers upon him.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lois-mcmaster-bujold/your-reverence-i-do-not-hate-any-man-in-this-world-enough-to-inflict/) [Lois McMaster Bujold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lois-mcmaster-bujold/) > [“I always thought my parents could fix anything. Now it's my turn. Dear God, how did this happen?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lois-mcmaster-bujold/i-always-thought-my-parents-could-fix-anything-now-it-s-my-turn-dear/) [Lois McMaster Bujold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lois-mcmaster-bujold/) > [“I think it is not so much the growth of virtue, as simply the replacement of prior vices with an addiction to one’s god.”…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lois-mcmaster-bujold/i-think-it-is-not-so-much-the-growth-of-virtue-as-simply-the/) [Lois McMaster Bujold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lois-mcmaster-bujold/) > [“Mark’s ideas tended to the bland, and there was no point in asking Miles, whose embittered suggestions all ran to things like Vomit Vanilla…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lois-mcmaster-bujold/mark-s-ideas-tended-to-the-bland-and-there-was-no-point-in-asking/) [Lois McMaster Bujold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lois-mcmaster-bujold/) > [The dead cannot cry out for justice. It is a duty of the living to do so for them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lois-mcmaster-bujold/the-dead-cannot-cry-out-for-justice-it-is-a-duty-of-the-living-to-do/) [Lois McMaster Bujold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lois-mcmaster-bujold/) > [“Gardens were meant to be seen, smelled, walked through, grubbed in. A hundred objective measurements didn't sum the worth of a garden; only the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lois-mcmaster-bujold/gardens-were-meant-to-be-seen-smelled-walked-through-grubbed-in-a/) [Lois McMaster Bujold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lois-mcmaster-bujold/) [Explore all 392 Lois McMaster Bujold quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lois-mcmaster-bujold/) ## More Apology quotes > [The greatest act of courage is to be and to ownall of who you are—without apology, without excuses, without masks to cover the truth…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/debbie-ford/the-greatest-act-of-courage-is-to-be-and-to-ownall-of-who-you-are/) [Debbie Ford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/debbie-ford/) > [Apologies are not pass/fail.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/randy-pausch/apologies-are-not-pass-fail/) [Randy Pausch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/randy-pausch/) > [“Why do we apologize for advocating for ourselves? Why do we apologize for taking up space that we are entitled to? Why do we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-tambascio/why-do-we-apologize-for-advocating-for-ourselves-why-do-we-apologize/) Elizabeth Tambascio > [It's hard to say sorry when It's really your fault.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rakii-retondo/it-s-hard-to-say-sorry-when-it-s-really-your-fault/) [Rakii Retondo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rakii-retondo/) > [“A lady need never apologize. ~ Joseph de Bonaparte (Brother of Napoleon)”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/allison-pataki/a-lady-need-never-apologize-joseph-de-bonaparte-brother-of-napoleon/) Allison Pataki > [And apologies, once postponed, become harder and harder to make, and finally impossible.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-mitchell/and-apologies-once-postponed-become-harder-and-harder-to-make-and/) [Margaret Mitchell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-mitchell/) > [In the formation of such a government, it is not only the right, but the indispensable duty of every citizen to examine the principles…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noah-webster/in-the-formation-of-such-a-government-it-is-not-only-the-right-but/) [Noah Webster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noah-webster/) > [Apologizing does not always mean you are wrong, it just means that value your relationships more than your ego.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chinier-bennett/apologizing-does-not-always-mean-you-are-wrong-it-just-means-that/) [Chinier Bennett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chinier-bennett/) > [If I can get enough signatures, to present an apology to slavery, I will present it to the President. The House of Representatives has…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kirk-douglas/if-i-can-get-enough-signatures-to-present-an-apology-to-slavery-i/) [Kirk Douglas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kirk-douglas/) > [“I don’t care if you’ve changed. I don’t care who you are now. I don’t need or want your explanations because what you did,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samantha-young/i-don-t-care-if-you-ve-changed-i-don-t-care-who-you-are-now-i-don-t/) [Samantha Young](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samantha-young/) > [I never said Kristen ruined my wedding. At the time, when a million other things had fallen apart that day, I felt like she…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scheana-shay/i-never-said-kristen-ruined-my-wedding-at-the-time-when-a-million/) [Scheana Shay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scheana-shay/) > [The greatest form of maturity is at harvest time. This is when we must learn how to reap without complaint if the amounts are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-rohn/the-greatest-form-of-maturity-is-at-harvest-time-this-is-when-we-must/) [Jim Rohn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-rohn/) > [“It's clear he still feels something, but what? Is the whole reason he made such a big deal about wanting to talk to me…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carey-heywood/it-s-clear-he-still-feels-something-but-what-is-the-whole-reason-he/) [Carey Heywood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carey-heywood/) > [I wasn't saying whatever they're saying I was saying. I'm sorry I said it really. I never meant it to be a lousy anti-religious…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-lennon/i-wasn-t-saying-whatever-they-re-saying-i-was-saying-i-m-sorry-i-said/) [John Lennon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-lennon/) > [For every person who atones, a hundred others find regret sufficient.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-breault/for-every-person-who-atones-a-hundred-others-find-regret-sufficient/) [Robert Breault](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-breault/) [Browse all 1,300 Apology quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/apology/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Dear Madam Vorsoisson, I am sorry. This is the eleventh draft of this letter. They’ve all started with those three words, even the horrible version in rhyme, so I guess they stay. You once asked me never to lie to you. All right, so. I’ll tell you the truth now even if it isn’t the best or cleverest thing, and not abject enough either. I tried to be the thief of you, to ambush and take prisoner what I thought I could never earn or be given. You were not a ship to be hijacked, but I couldn’t think of any other plan but subterfuge and surprise. Though not as much of a surprise as what happened at dinner. The revolution started prematurely because the idiot conspirator blew up his secret ammo dump and lit the sky with his intentions. Sometimes these accidents end in new nations, but more often they end badly, in hangings and beheadings. And people running into the night. I can’t be sorry that I asked you to marry me, because that was the one true part in all the smoke and rubble, but I’m sick as hell that I asked you so badly. Even though I’d kept my counsel from you, I should have at least had the courtesy to keep it from others as well, till you’d had the year of grace and rest you’d asked for. But I became terrified that you’d choose another first. So I used the garden as a ploy to get near you. I deliberately and consciously shaped your heart’s desire into a trap. For this I am more than sorry, I am ashamed. You’d earned every chance to grow. I’d like to pretend I didn’t see it would be a conflict of interest for me to be the one to give you some of those chances, but that would be another lie. But it made me crazy to watch you constrained to tiny steps, when you could be outrunning time. There is only a brief moment of apogee to do that, in most lives. I love you. But I lust after and covet so much more than your body. I wanted to possess the power of your eyes, the way they see form and beauty that isn’t even there yet and draw it up out of nothing into the solid world. I wanted to own the honor of your heart, unbowed in the vilest horrors of Komarr. I wanted your courage and your will, your caution and your serenity. I wanted, I suppose, your soul, and that was too much to want. I wanted to give you a victory. But by their essential nature triumphs can’t be given. They must be taken, and the worse the odds and the fiercer the resistance, the greater the honor. Victories can’t be gifts. But gifts can be victories, can’t they. It’s what you said. The garden could have been your gift, a dowry of talent, skill, and vision. I know it’s too late now, but I just wanted to say, it would have been a victory most worthy of our House. Yours to command, Miles Vorkosigan”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Lois McMaster Bujold" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lois-mcmaster-bujold/dear-madam-vorsoisson-i-am-sorry-this-is-the-eleventh-draft-of-this/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Apology" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lois-mcmaster-bujold/dear-madam-vorsoisson-i-am-sorry-this-is-the-eleventh-draft-of-this/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dd8/lois-mcmaster-bujold-716_apology_dear-madam-vorsoisson-i-am-sorry-this-is_2411445.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dd8/lois-mcmaster-bujold-716_apology_dear-madam-vorsoisson-i-am-sorry-this-is_2411445.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dd8/lois-mcmaster-bujold-716_apology_dear-madam-vorsoisson-i-am-sorry-this-is_2411445.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Dear Madam Vorsoisson, I am sorry. 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