--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I stopped right in the middle of the…" description: "\"“I stopped right in the middle of the road. There was no traffic. Before heading back towards my flat to get the number I paused for a while, I don't k..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/914/tom-mccarthy-45935_middle-of-the-road_i-stopped-right-in-the-middle-of-the-roa_2766316.jpg" --- # I stopped right in the middle of the road. There was no… ![“I stopped right in the middle of the road. There was no traffic. Before heading back towards my flat to get the number I paused for a while, I don't know how long, and stood in what had been the marksmen's sightlines. I turned the palms of my hands outwards, closed my eyes and thought about that…” quote by Tom McCarthy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/914/tom-mccarthy-45935_middle-of-the-road_i-stopped-right-in-the-middle-of-the-roa_2766316.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/914/tom-mccarthy-45935_middle-of-the-road_i-stopped-right-in-the-middle-of-the-roa_2766316.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/914/tom-mccarthy-45935_middle-of-the-road_i-stopped-right-in-the-middle-of-the-roa_2766316.jpg) > ““I stopped right in the middle of the road. There was no traffic. Before heading back towards my flat to get the number I paused for a while, I don't know how long, and stood in what had been the marksmen's sightlines. I turned the palms of my hands outwards, closed my eyes and thought about that memory of just before the accident, being buffeted by wind. Remembering it sent a tingling from the top of my legs to my shoulders and right up into my neck. It lasted for just a moment-but while it did it felt not-neutral. I felt different, intense: both intense and serene at the same time. I remember feeling this way very well: standing there, passive, with my palms turned outwards, feeling intense and serene.”” [Tom McCarthy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-mccarthy/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. A reflective pause in a dangerous setting can transform fear into a serene, intense awareness. **In simple terms:** Mindful pause changes fear to calm focus. Key Takeaway Use mindful breathing to shift perception. Themes mindfulness fear tranquility intensity Mood reflective calm Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - walking in traffic - meditative practice - stressful moments Key Concepts psychology of panic body awareness Questions to Reflect On - How does breath affect emotional state? - When can you practice mindful pauses? A Different Perspective Not everyone can access such calm under pressure. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Middle of the road](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/middle-of-the-road/) ## Related quotes > [It's hard to say how we compare to other people. We each inhabit our own personalities. I have often felt that I'm a very…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joyce-carol-oates/it-s-hard-to-say-how-we-compare-to-other-people-we-each-inhabit-our/) [Joyce Carol Oates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joyce-carol-oates/) > [I actually feel something in my chest open, a feeling so intense, it’s like my heart’s about to burst. 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Not genius or inspiration or flights of imagination, skill or cunning, but logistics.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-mccarthy/all-great-enterprises-are-about-logistics-not-genius-or-inspiration/) [Tom McCarthy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-mccarthy/) > [ “\[...\]to be real--to become fluent, natural, to cut out the detour that sweeps us around what's fundamental to events, preventing us from touching their… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-mccarthy/to-be-real-to-become-fluent-natural-to-cut-out-the-detour-that-sweeps/) [Tom McCarthy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-mccarthy/) > [“Literature has to remain frustrating — to withhold something, remain incomplete — or it’s not literature anymore, but rather entertainment, edification or interpretation. That’s…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-mccarthy/literature-has-to-remain-frustrating-to-withhold-something-remain/) [Tom McCarthy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-mccarthy/) > [“Surplus matter. 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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. 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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. 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I turned the palms of my hands outwards, closed my eyes and thought about that memory of just before the accident, being buffeted by wind. Remembering it sent a tingling from the top of my legs to my shoulders and right up into my neck. It lasted for just a moment-but while it did it felt not-neutral. I felt different, intense: both intense and serene at the same time. 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