Hello,
I sort of understand the bit in bold. However, I just want to make sure I am not far off ..
Background information: A former MI5 agent embarks on a journey to Egypt (after his colleague' s and simultaneously best friend's death) which proves essential for his future life. During the journey he suddenly realizes he cannot go on like that (working as an MI5 agent) any more and decides to turn over a new leaf, i.e. train for the ministry and become a vicar.
G.M. Malliet: Wicked autumn
"Time shifted, collapsed. It was his road-to-Damascus experience, and it came not with a blinding light, or a parting of the clouds by an unseen hand, but with a calm certainty, in the most banal of circumstances."
What I 've inferred from the following bit: The time ("metaphorically") passed by (shifted), then suddenly stopped (collapsed)` suddenly there was a turning point in his life (road-to-Damascus); it wasn't a dramatic point?? (it came not with a blinding light) or parting of the clouds (this is definitely a metaphor... I am not really sure about the meaning) but it can't have been more straightforward (with a calm certainty) - he suddenly knew and it was that simple.
I would be grateful if you could help - either confirm or refute my assumptions and explain the meaning in bold).
Many thanks
I sort of understand the bit in bold. However, I just want to make sure I am not far off ..
Background information: A former MI5 agent embarks on a journey to Egypt (after his colleague' s and simultaneously best friend's death) which proves essential for his future life. During the journey he suddenly realizes he cannot go on like that (working as an MI5 agent) any more and decides to turn over a new leaf, i.e. train for the ministry and become a vicar.
G.M. Malliet: Wicked autumn
"Time shifted, collapsed. It was his road-to-Damascus experience, and it came not with a blinding light, or a parting of the clouds by an unseen hand, but with a calm certainty, in the most banal of circumstances."
What I 've inferred from the following bit: The time ("metaphorically") passed by (shifted), then suddenly stopped (collapsed)` suddenly there was a turning point in his life (road-to-Damascus); it wasn't a dramatic point?? (it came not with a blinding light) or parting of the clouds (this is definitely a metaphor... I am not really sure about the meaning) but it can't have been more straightforward (with a calm certainty) - he suddenly knew and it was that simple.
I would be grateful if you could help - either confirm or refute my assumptions and explain the meaning in bold).
Many thanks