---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: We lay there with our bodies touching…"
description: "\"“We lay there with our bodies touching, and as I shook, a powerful knowledge took hold. He had done this thing to me and I had lived. That was all. I w..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3b2/alice-sebold-999_assault_we-lay-there-with-our-bodies-touching-an_1714338.jpg"
---

#  We lay there with our bodies touching, and as I shook, a…

![“We lay there with our bodies touching, and as I shook, a powerful knowledge took hold. He had done this thing to me and I had lived. That was all. I was still breathing. I heard his heart. I smelled his breath. The dark earth around us smelled like what it was, moist dirt where animals lived their…” quote by Alice Sebold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3b2/alice-sebold-999_assault_we-lay-there-with-our-bodies-touching-an_1714338.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3b2/alice-sebold-999_assault_we-lay-there-with-our-bodies-touching-an_1714338.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3b2/alice-sebold-999_assault_we-lay-there-with-our-bodies-touching-an_1714338.jpg)

> ““We lay there with our bodies touching, and as I shook, a powerful knowledge took hold. He had done this thing to me and I had lived. That was all. I was still breathing. I heard his heart. I smelled his breath. The dark earth around us smelled like what it was, moist dirt where animals lived their daily lives. I could have yelled for hours.””

[Alice Sebold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-sebold/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

A moment of intimate connection awakens a profound, almost mystical awareness of being alive despite trauma.

**In simple terms:** Intimacy reveals deep awareness of life.

Key Takeaway

Cherish present sensations.

Themes

intimacy trauma awakening

Mood

reflective intense

Type

literary personal

When to use this quote

- grief counseling
- intimate moments
- mindfulness practice

Key Concepts

existential awareness sensory perception

Questions to Reflect On

- How does physical closeness affect emotional healing?
- What does “powerful knowledge” mean to you?

A Different Perspective

Such moments can be fleeting and may not resolve underlying pain.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Animals Lived](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/animals-lived-1276988/) [Assault](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/assault/) [Earth Smelled](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/earth-smelled-1276985/) [Heart Smelled](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/heart-smelled-1276986/) [Rape](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rape/) [Smelled](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/smelled/) [Smelled Breath](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/smelled-breath-1276987/) [Survival](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/survival/)

## Related quotes

> [“Certainly sand was not suitable for life. Yet, was a stationary condition absolutely indispensable for existence? Didn't unpleasant competition arise precisely because one tried…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kobo-abe/certainly-sand-was-not-suitable-for-life-yet-was-a-stationary/)

[Kōbō Abe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kobo-abe/)

> [Wild animals would not stay in a country where there were so many people. Pa did not like to stay, either. He liked a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-ingalls-wilder/wild-animals-would-not-stay-in-a-country-where-there-were-so-many/)

[Laura Ingalls Wilder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-ingalls-wilder/)

> [“In the very earliest times, when both people and animals lived on earth, a person could become an animal if he wanted to, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/virginia-morell/in-the-very-earliest-times-when-both-people-and-animals-lived-on/)

[Virginia Morell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/virginia-morell/)

> [“And it has stayed there, calmly in its spot, growing slowly, producing leaves, losing leaves, producing more, as those mammoths became extinct, as Homer…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matt-haig/and-it-has-stayed-there-calmly-in-its-spot-growing-slowly-producing/)

[Matt Haig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matt-haig/)

> [“At Eversong, there were all sorts of dogs. And some of them, the ones I liked best, would lift their heads when they smelled…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-sebold/at-eversong-there-were-all-sorts-of-dogs-and-some-of-them-the-ones-i/)

[Alice Sebold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-sebold/)

> [“The stuff smelled nasty: like gasoline and dirty socks mixed with something sweet. Kind of like Buckley’s cough syrup.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/coreene-callahan/the-stuff-smelled-nasty-like-gasoline-and-dirty-socks-mixed-with/)

[Coreene Callahan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/coreene-callahan/)

> [“Consider me an open book" dev said. "Mi casa es su casa." Dev crinkled his nose and smelled the air. "Err, mi nose es…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-lynn-barnes/consider-me-an-open-book-dev-said-mi-casa-es-su-casa-dev-crinkled-his/)

[Jennifer Lynn Barnes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-lynn-barnes/)

> [“He smelled good. Sweat and motorcycle and wintergreen. No stinking weed smoke. No perfume. No sadness. He smelled like love.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bryn-greenwood/he-smelled-good-sweat-and-motorcycle-and-wintergreen-no-stinking-weed/)

[Bryn Greenwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bryn-greenwood/)

> [“It was nearly five before Jake walked in. He was sunburnt, wet, and smelled faintly of fish. Sexy as hell. Don’t ask me to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/josh-lanyon/it-was-nearly-five-before-jake-walked-in-he-was-sunburnt-wet-and/)

[Josh Lanyon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/josh-lanyon/)

> [“Man, she loved the way Remy smelled. Male … warm. Expensive. Idly, she noticed the same scent was on her, now. It was the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shiloh-walker/man-she-loved-the-way-remy-smelled-male-warm-expensive-idly-she/)

[Shiloh Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shiloh-walker/)

> [The book smelled dusty and old but also carried a sweet tang, a hint of something inviting. She opened to the first page and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shannon-hale/the-book-smelled-dusty-and-old-but-also-carried-a-sweet-tang-a-hint/)

[Shannon Hale](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shannon-hale/)

> [“She wondered if everyone could smell it on her. It smelled like death and coffee, like lilies and dirt, and it permeated her.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/r-l-griffin/she-wondered-if-everyone-could-smell-it-on-her-it-smelled-like-death/)

[R.L. Griffin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/r-l-griffin/)

> [When you chopped logs with the ax and they split open they smelled beautiful, like Christmas. But when you split someone's head open it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kate-atkinson/when-you-chopped-logs-with-the-ax-and-they-split-open-they-smelled/)

[Kate Atkinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kate-atkinson/)

> [Fans would always want us to sign their sneakers. I'd hold the shoes up to my face and stick my nose in 'em and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marky-ramone/fans-would-always-want-us-to-sign-their-sneakers-i-d-hold-the-shoes/)

[Marky Ramone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marky-ramone/)

> [“There was no wind, and, outside now of the warm air of the cave, heavy with smoke of both tobacco and charcoal, with the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-hemingway/there-was-no-wind-and-outside-now-of-the-warm-air-of-the-cave-heavy/)

[Ernest Hemingway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-hemingway/)

## More by Alice Sebold

> [Now I am in the place I call this wide wide Heaven because it includes all my simplest desires but also the most humble…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-sebold/now-i-am-in-the-place-i-call-this-wide-wide-heaven-because-it/)

[Alice Sebold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-sebold/)

> [I left my mark on that man.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-sebold/i-left-my-mark-on-that-man/)

[Alice Sebold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-sebold/)

> [These things, she felt, were not to be passed around like disingenuous party favors. She kept an honor code with her journals and her…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-sebold/these-things-she-felt-were-not-to-be-passed-around-like-disingenuous/)

[Alice Sebold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-sebold/)

> [I don't think ignorance is a way that you gain distance on something.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-sebold/i-don-t-think-ignorance-is-a-way-that-you-gain-distance-on-something/)

[Alice Sebold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-sebold/)

> [I was like I was in science class: I was curious.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-sebold/i-was-like-i-was-in-science-class-i-was-curious/)

[Alice Sebold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-sebold/)

> [“There are secret rooms inside us,” I had said to my therapist. “A relatively benign construct,” he said, and so I did not bother…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-sebold/there-are-secret-rooms-inside-us-i-had-said-to-my-therapist-a/)

[Alice Sebold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-sebold/)

> [“This is just a temporary hell, not a permanent one”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-sebold/this-is-just-a-temporary-hell-not-a-permanent-one/)

[Alice Sebold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-sebold/)

> [“And a soul would run by a living being, touch them softly on the shoulder or cheek, and continue on its way to heaven.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-sebold/and-a-soul-would-run-by-a-living-being-touch-them-softly-on-the/)

[Alice Sebold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-sebold/)

> [As if in the other side of his kiss there could ve a new life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-sebold/as-if-in-the-other-side-of-his-kiss-there-could-ve-a-new-life/)

[Alice Sebold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-sebold/)

> [“My little brother's greatest fear was that the one person who meant so much to him would go away. He loved Lindsey and Grandma…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-sebold/my-little-brother-s-greatest-fear-was-that-the-one-person-who-meant/)

[Alice Sebold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-sebold/)

> [“She listened for the pain in my words, not to the narrative itself. She was intuiting what it meant to me, what was most…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-sebold/she-listened-for-the-pain-in-my-words-not-to-the-narrative-itself-she/)

[Alice Sebold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-sebold/)

> [The relationship with the words someone uses is more intimate and integrated than just a quick read and a blurb can ever be. This…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-sebold/the-relationship-with-the-words-someone-uses-is-more-intimate-and/)

[Alice Sebold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-sebold/)

> [Ruth hadn't talked to my sister since before my death, and then it was only to excuse herself in the hallway at school. But…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-sebold/ruth-hadn-t-talked-to-my-sister-since-before-my-death-and-then-it-was/)

[Alice Sebold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-sebold/)

> [Since then I've always thought that under rape in the dictionary it should tell the truth. It is not just forcible intercourse; rape means…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-sebold/since-then-i-ve-always-thought-that-under-rape-in-the-dictionary-it/)

[Alice Sebold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-sebold/)

> [I live in a world where two truths coexist: where both hell and hope lie in the palm of my hand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-sebold/i-live-in-a-world-where-two-truths-coexist-where-both-hell-and-hope/)

[Alice Sebold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-sebold/)

[Explore all 302 Alice Sebold quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-sebold/)

## More Assault quotes

> [In an attempt to hinder, if not altogether halt, the next move of God, Satan has sent forth an army of faultfinding demons against…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francis-frangipane/in-an-attempt-to-hinder-if-not-altogether-halt-the-next-move-of-god/)

[Francis Frangipane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francis-frangipane/)

> [There is an all-out assault now on the Christian community in this country.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rush-limbaugh/there-is-an-all-out-assault-now-on-the-christian-community-in-this/)

[Rush Limbaugh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rush-limbaugh/)

> [I don't know how I can feel safe with Donald Trump, who bragged about sexual assault having the most power of anyone in America,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-pozner/i-don-t-know-how-i-can-feel-safe-with-donald-trump-who-bragged-about/)

[Jennifer Pozner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-pozner/)

> [At Ohio State University, to avoid being guilty of 'sexual assault' or 'sexual violence,' you and your partner now apparently have to agree on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rush-limbaugh/at-ohio-state-university-to-avoid-being-guilty-of-sexual-assault-or/)

[Rush Limbaugh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rush-limbaugh/)

> [Their problem is not me and the Democrats; their problem is themselves. Who are they? Are they these extreme conservatives who are right-to-life, pro-assault-weapon,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-cuomo/their-problem-is-not-me-and-the-democrats-their-problem-is-themselves/)

[Andrew Cuomo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-cuomo/)

> [I wrapped a movie called 'Zombieland,' in which I was constantly under assault by zombies, then flew to New York, still very much in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/woody-harrelson/i-wrapped-a-movie-called-zombieland-in-which-i-was-constantly-under/)

[Woody Harrelson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/woody-harrelson/)

> [When a child hits a child, we call it aggression. When a child hits an adult, we call it hostility. When an adult hits…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/when-a-child-hits-a-child-we-call-it-aggression-when-a-child-hits-an/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [I'm the same guy at that podium preaching to the people on every single song. I'm not doing a dance for you on another…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fred-durst/i-m-the-same-guy-at-that-podium-preaching-to-the-people-on-every/)

[Fred Durst](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fred-durst/)

> [That tertiary education is under a sustained assault by a political and - it often seems - social consensus that equates all education with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/will-self/that-tertiary-education-is-under-a-sustained-assault-by-a-political/)

[Will Self](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/will-self/)

> [The biggest threat to any politician is an artist. Comedians unleashed can do a great deal of damage. David Letterman can do more damage…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-moriarty/the-biggest-threat-to-any-politician-is-an-artist-comedians-unleashed/)

[Michael Moriarty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-moriarty/)

> [George W. Bush and his administration embarked on a full-scale assault on civil liberties, human rights and the rule of law, walking away from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bianca-jagger/george-w-bush-and-his-administration-embarked-on-a-full-scale-assault/)

[Bianca Jagger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bianca-jagger/)

> [Sexual assault and domestic violence are difficult things to talk about. Talk about them anyway.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mariska-hargitay/sexual-assault-and-domestic-violence-are-difficult-things-to-talk/)

[Mariska Hargitay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mariska-hargitay/)

> [One's own self-worth is tied to the worth of the community to which one belongs, which is intimately connected to humanity in general. What…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wole-soyinka/one-s-own-self-worth-is-tied-to-the-worth-of-the-community-to-which/)

[Wole Soyinka](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wole-soyinka/)

> [Where do find the most persecuted Christians in the world?... in the classrooms of our government schools, where the assault is not upon the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-keyes/where-do-find-the-most-persecuted-christians-in-the-world-in-the/)

[Alan Keyes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-keyes/)

> [The present assault upon capital is but the beginning. It will be but a stepping-stone to others, larger and more sweeping, till our political…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-present-assault-upon-capital-is-but-the-beginning-it-will-be-but/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

[Browse all 565 Assault quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/assault/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "“We lay there with our bodies touching, and as I shook, a powerful knowledge took hold. He had done this thing to me and I had lived. That was all. I was still breathing. I heard his heart. I smelled his breath. The dark earth around us smelled like what it was, moist dirt where animals lived their daily lives. I could have yelled for hours.”",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Alice Sebold"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-sebold/we-lay-there-with-our-bodies-touching-and-as-i-shook-a-powerful/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Assault"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-sebold/we-lay-there-with-our-bodies-touching-and-as-i-shook-a-powerful/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3b2/alice-sebold-999_assault_we-lay-there-with-our-bodies-touching-an_1714338.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3b2/alice-sebold-999_assault_we-lay-there-with-our-bodies-touching-an_1714338.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3b2/alice-sebold-999_assault_we-lay-there-with-our-bodies-touching-an_1714338.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“We lay there with our bodies touching, and as I shook, a powerful knowledge took hold. He had done this…” — Alice Sebold",
                "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": "Alice Sebold",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-sebold/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "“We lay there with our bodies...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-sebold/we-lay-there-with-our-bodies-touching-and-as-i-shook-a-powerful/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-sebold/we-lay-there-with-our-bodies-touching-and-as-i-shook-a-powerful/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
