--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Great-Uncle Merry, coming back towards…" description: "\"“Great-Uncle Merry, coming back towards the car from the Grey House, had suddenly stopped in his tracks in the middle of the road. He was gazing down a..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cba/susan-cooper-10642_middle-of-the-road_great-uncle-merry-coming-back-towards-th_797437.jpg" --- # Great-Uncle Merry, coming back towards the car from the… ![“Great-Uncle Merry, coming back towards the car from the Grey House, had suddenly stopped in his tracks in the middle of the road. He was gazing down at the sea; and she realised that he had caught sight of the yacht. What startled her was the expression on his face. Standing there like a craggy…” quote by Susan Cooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cba/susan-cooper-10642_middle-of-the-road_great-uncle-merry-coming-back-towards-th_797437.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cba/susan-cooper-10642_middle-of-the-road_great-uncle-merry-coming-back-towards-th_797437.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cba/susan-cooper-10642_middle-of-the-road_great-uncle-merry-coming-back-towards-th_797437.jpg) > ““Great-Uncle Merry, coming back towards the car from the Grey House, had suddenly stopped in his tracks in the middle of the road. He was gazing down at the sea; and she realised that he had caught sight of the yacht. What startled her was the expression on his face. Standing there like a craggy towering statue, he was frowning, fierce and intense, almost as if he were looking and listening with senses other than his eyes and ears. He could never look frightened, she thought, but this was the nearest thing to it that she had ever seen. Cautious, startled, alarmed . . . what was the matter with him? Was there something strange about the yacht? Then”” [Susan Cooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-cooper/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. A sudden, intense observation reveals hidden danger, prompting instinctive caution. **In simple terms:** A startling sight triggers fear and vigilance. Key Takeaway Trust instincts when something feels off. Themes fear intuition danger perception Mood tense alert thoughtful Type literary narrative When to use this quote - walking home - traveling - exploring unfamiliar places Key Concepts suspense psychological tension Questions to Reflect On - What signs do you ignore in risky situations? - How can you balance intuition with rational analysis? A Different Perspective Over‑reliance on intuition may lead to misinterpretation. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Middle of the road](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/middle-of-the-road/) ## Related quotes > [“There was something about Great-Uncle Merry that was like the hills, or the sea, or the sky; something ancient, but without age or end.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-cooper/there-was-something-about-great-uncle-merry-that-was-like-the-hills/) [Susan Cooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-cooper/) > [“What?" I smiled at him. "If I become lost, I will never be found again." To my disappointment, that startled expression melted away as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carissa-broadbent/what-i-smiled-at-him-if-i-become-lost-i-will-never-be-found-again-to/) [Carissa Broadbent](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carissa-broadbent/) > [People who stand in the "middle-of-the-road" get run over.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rush-limbaugh/people-who-stand-in-the-middle-of-the-road-get-run-over/) [Rush Limbaugh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rush-limbaugh/) > [“It's fun to be on the edge. I think you do your best work when you take chances when you're not safe when you're…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/danny-de-vito/it-s-fun-to-be-on-the-edge-i-think-you-do-your-best-work-when-you/) Danny De Vito > [“Say to a blind man, you’re free, open the door that was separating him from the world, Go, you are free, we tell him…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jos-saramago/say-to-a-blind-man-you-re-free-open-the-door-that-was-separating-him/) [Jose Saramago](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jos-saramago/) > [President Johnson offered the middle of the road.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lew-wasserman/president-johnson-offered-the-middle-of-the-road/) [Lew Wasserman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lew-wasserman/) > [The middle of the road is all of the usable surface. The extremes, right and left, are in the gutters.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dwight-d-eisenhower/the-middle-of-the-road-is-all-of-the-usable-surface-the-extremes/) [Dwight D. Eisenhower](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dwight-d-eisenhower/) > [I think every league is good. Every league is pretty much the same: You got your top teams that are all very good, you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-stoops/i-think-every-league-is-good-every-league-is-pretty-much-the-same-you/) [Bob Stoops](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-stoops/) > [I really like people who can do both drama and comedy and not some like middle of the road do both drama and comedy.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-gunn/i-really-like-people-who-can-do-both-drama-and-comedy-and-not-some/) [James Gunn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-gunn/) > [I'm a true centrist: my beliefs put me in the middle... You know what happens to people who drive in the middle of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rob-lowe/i-m-a-true-centrist-my-beliefs-put-me-in-the-middle-you-know-what/) [Rob Lowe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rob-lowe/) > [“All extremes are dangerous. It is best to keep in the middle of the road, in the common ruts, however muddy.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/virginia-woolf/all-extremes-are-dangerous-it-is-best-to-keep-in-the-middle-of-the/) [Virginia Woolf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/virginia-woolf/) > [There are still some people - it's hard to believe - that aren't aware yet of Sparks. So we still kind of go at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/russell-mael/there-are-still-some-people-it-s-hard-to-believe-that-aren-t-aware/) [Russell Mael](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/russell-mael/) > [I’ve flown kites before and I know – sometimes they’re gone forever, and sometimes they’re just waiting in the middle of the road for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wendelin-van-draanen/i-ve-flown-kites-before-and-i-know-sometimes-they-re-gone-forever-and/) [Wendelin Van Draanen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wendelin-van-draanen/) > [“Ian Kabra had charm, wealth, and stunning good looks. But he couldn't move one stubborn cow out of the middle of the road.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/riley-clifford/ian-kabra-had-charm-wealth-and-stunning-good-looks-but-he-couldn-t/) [Riley Clifford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/riley-clifford/) > [Going to a site with more users seems obviously better to me, but at the same time, having a bland, middle of the road…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christian-rudder/going-to-a-site-with-more-users-seems-obviously-better-to-me-but-at/) [Christian Rudder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christian-rudder/) ## More by Susan Cooper > [“Still in the black hemisphere the stars blazed and slowly wheeled; beneath them, Will felt so infinitesimally small that it seemed impossible he should…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-cooper/still-in-the-black-hemisphere-the-stars-blazed-and-slowly-wheeled/) [Susan Cooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-cooper/) > [The future cannot blame the present, just as the present cannot blame the past. The hope is always here, always alive, but only your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-cooper/the-future-cannot-blame-the-present-just-as-the-present-cannot-blame/) [Susan Cooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-cooper/) > [“He was tall, and straight, with a lot of very thick, wild, white hair. In his grim brown face the nose curved fiercely, like…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-cooper/he-was-tall-and-straight-with-a-lot-of-very-thick-wild-white-hair-in/) [Susan Cooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-cooper/) > [“The snow lay thin and apologetic over the world.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-cooper/the-snow-lay-thin-and-apologetic-over-the-world/) [Susan Cooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-cooper/) > [“But those men who know anything at all about the Light also know that there is a fierceness to its power, like the bare…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-cooper/but-those-men-who-know-anything-at-all-about-the-light-also-know-that/) [Susan Cooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-cooper/) > [“On the day of the dead, when the year too dies, Must the youngest open the oldest hills Through the door of the birds,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-cooper/on-the-day-of-the-dead-when-the-year-too-dies-must-the-youngest-open/) [Susan Cooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-cooper/) > [“If you are concerned for the future of our civilization, there is no more cheering sight than a boy or girl who is lost…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-cooper/if-you-are-concerned-for-the-future-of-our-civilization-there-is-no/) [Susan Cooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-cooper/) > [“When the dark comes rising, six shall turn it back; Three from the circle, three from the track; Wood, bronze, iron; water, fire, stone;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-cooper/when-the-dark-comes-rising-six-shall-turn-it-back-three-from-the/) [Susan Cooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-cooper/) > [“Trance is fragile.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-cooper/trance-is-fragile/) [Susan Cooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-cooper/) > [“Somewhere in Barney's mind, as a spark flickers and finds tinder and blazes up into a flame, a small light of resentment flared suddenly…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-cooper/somewhere-in-barney-s-mind-as-a-spark-flickers-and-finds-tinder-and/) [Susan Cooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-cooper/) > [“The Herdsman passed, nodding, the bright star Arcturus at his knee; the Bull roared by, bearing the great sun Aldebaran and the small group…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-cooper/the-herdsman-passed-nodding-the-bright-star-arcturus-at-his-knee-the/) [Susan Cooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-cooper/) > [Will picked a single blossom from a gorse bush beside him; it shone bright yellow on his grubby hand. "People are very complicated," he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-cooper/will-picked-a-single-blossom-from-a-gorse-bush-beside-him-it-shone/) [Susan Cooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-cooper/) > [“It says, loving doesn't change just because someone isn't there, or because time gets in the way, or even death. It's always with you,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-cooper/it-says-loving-doesn-t-change-just-because-someone-isn-t-there-or/) [Susan Cooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-cooper/) > [“Now especially since man has the strength to destroy the world, it is the responsibility of man to keep it alive, in all its…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-cooper/now-especially-since-man-has-the-strength-to-destroy-the-world-it-is/) [Susan Cooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-cooper/) > [“Go away," he said. "Go away. I wish you had never come here. I wish I had never heard of the Light and the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-cooper/go-away-he-said-go-away-i-wish-you-had-never-come-here-i-wish-i-had/) [Susan Cooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-cooper/) [Explore all 64 Susan Cooper quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-cooper/) ## More Middle of the road quotes > [Going to a site with more users seems obviously better to me, but at the same time, having a bland, middle of the road…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christian-rudder/going-to-a-site-with-more-users-seems-obviously-better-to-me-but-at/) [Christian Rudder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christian-rudder/) > [“Ian Kabra had charm, wealth, and stunning good looks. But he couldn't move one stubborn cow out of the middle of the road.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/riley-clifford/ian-kabra-had-charm-wealth-and-stunning-good-looks-but-he-couldn-t/) [Riley Clifford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/riley-clifford/) > [I’ve flown kites before and I know – sometimes they’re gone forever, and sometimes they’re just waiting in the middle of the road for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wendelin-van-draanen/i-ve-flown-kites-before-and-i-know-sometimes-they-re-gone-forever-and/) [Wendelin Van Draanen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wendelin-van-draanen/) > [There are still some people - it's hard to believe - that aren't aware yet of Sparks. So we still kind of go at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/russell-mael/there-are-still-some-people-it-s-hard-to-believe-that-aren-t-aware/) [Russell Mael](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/russell-mael/) > [“All extremes are dangerous. It is best to keep in the middle of the road, in the common ruts, however muddy.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/virginia-woolf/all-extremes-are-dangerous-it-is-best-to-keep-in-the-middle-of-the/) [Virginia Woolf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/virginia-woolf/) > [I'm a true centrist: my beliefs put me in the middle... You know what happens to people who drive in the middle of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rob-lowe/i-m-a-true-centrist-my-beliefs-put-me-in-the-middle-you-know-what/) [Rob Lowe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rob-lowe/) > [I really like people who can do both drama and comedy and not some like middle of the road do both drama and comedy.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-gunn/i-really-like-people-who-can-do-both-drama-and-comedy-and-not-some/) [James Gunn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-gunn/) > [I think every league is good. Every league is pretty much the same: You got your top teams that are all very good, you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-stoops/i-think-every-league-is-good-every-league-is-pretty-much-the-same-you/) [Bob Stoops](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-stoops/) > [The middle of the road is all of the usable surface. The extremes, right and left, are in the gutters.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dwight-d-eisenhower/the-middle-of-the-road-is-all-of-the-usable-surface-the-extremes/) [Dwight D. Eisenhower](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dwight-d-eisenhower/) > [President Johnson offered the middle of the road.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lew-wasserman/president-johnson-offered-the-middle-of-the-road/) [Lew Wasserman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lew-wasserman/) > [“Say to a blind man, you’re free, open the door that was separating him from the world, Go, you are free, we tell him…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jos-saramago/say-to-a-blind-man-you-re-free-open-the-door-that-was-separating-him/) [Jose Saramago](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jos-saramago/) > [“It's fun to be on the edge. I think you do your best work when you take chances when you're not safe when you're…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/danny-de-vito/it-s-fun-to-be-on-the-edge-i-think-you-do-your-best-work-when-you/) Danny De Vito > [People who stand in the "middle-of-the-road" get run over.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rush-limbaugh/people-who-stand-in-the-middle-of-the-road-get-run-over/) [Rush Limbaugh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rush-limbaugh/) > [Prudence is not hesitation, procrastination, or moderation. It is not driving in the middle of the road. It is not the way of ambivalence,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-ortberg/prudence-is-not-hesitation-procrastination-or-moderation-it-is-not/) [John Ortberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-ortberg/) > [The middle of the road is where the white line is - and that's the worst place to drive.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-frost/the-middle-of-the-road-is-where-the-white-line-is-and-that-s-the/) [Robert Frost](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-frost/) [Browse all 124 Middle of the road quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/middle-of-the-road/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Great-Uncle Merry, coming back towards the car from the Grey House, had suddenly stopped in his tracks in the middle of the road. He was gazing down at the sea; and she realised that he had caught sight of the yacht. What startled her was the expression on his face. Standing there like a craggy towering statue, he was frowning, fierce and intense, almost as if he were looking and listening with senses other than his eyes and ears. He could never look frightened, she thought, but this was the nearest thing to it that she had ever seen. Cautious, startled, alarmed . . . what was the matter with him? Was there something strange about the yacht? 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