--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: A sense of desolation settled within me…" description: "\"“A sense of desolation settled within me: a cold, slimy stone lodged under my lungs. There was nothing happy about the woods, I thought, especially at ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e7f/craig-davidson-40443_desolation_a-sense-of-desolation-settled-within-me_716.jpg" --- # A sense of desolation settled within me: a cold, slimy… ![“A sense of desolation settled within me: a cold, slimy stone lodged under my lungs. There was nothing happy about the woods, I thought, especially at night.” quote by Craig Davidson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e7f/craig-davidson-40443_desolation_a-sense-of-desolation-settled-within-me_716.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e7f/craig-davidson-40443_desolation_a-sense-of-desolation-settled-within-me_716.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e7f/craig-davidson-40443_desolation_a-sense-of-desolation-settled-within-me_716.jpg) > ““A sense of desolation settled within me: a cold, slimy stone lodged under my lungs. There was nothing happy about the woods, I thought, especially at night.”” [Craig Davidson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/craig-davidson/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The narrator describes an overwhelming feeling of desolation, likening it to a cold, slimy stone lodged in the lungs, and perceives the woods as unsettling, especially at night. **In simple terms:** Desolation feels like a choking, cold weight. Key Takeaway Physical metaphors convey deep emotional emptiness. Themes emotion nature desolation imagery night Mood eerie somber Type descriptive passage literary illustration When to use this quote - Walking alone in a forest at night - Experiencing grief in a quiet setting - Writing horror or gothic scenes Key Concepts embodied cognition environmental mood Practical Applications - Use vivid bodily metaphors to intensify mood - Leverage setting to mirror internal states Questions to Reflect On - How does setting amplify emotional tone? - What other physical sensations can symbolize despair? ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Desolation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/desolation/) [Forest](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/forest/) [Missing people](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/missing-people/) [Woods](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/woods/) ## Related quotes > [“A cold sense of desolation lodged itself somewhere in the base of my throat, and suddenly I was no longer enraged or devastated, but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/a-cold-sense-of-desolation-lodged-itself-somewhere-in-the-base-of-my/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I settled at Cold Mountain long ago Already it seems like ages Wandering free I roam the woods and streams Lingering to watch things…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hanshan/i-settled-at-cold-mountain-long-ago-already-it-seems-like-ages/) [Hanshan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hanshan/) > [On that Sunday morning the first thing that impressed the people who approached the tomb was the unusual position of the one and a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/josh-mcdowell/on-that-sunday-morning-the-first-thing-that-impressed-the-people-who/) [Josh McDowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/josh-mcdowell/) > [“Missing people in our lives are like wounds we reopen with thoughts.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-hearne/missing-people-in-our-lives-are-like-wounds-we-reopen-with-thoughts/) [Kevin Hearne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-hearne/) > [“We are all hurting and missing people. Everyone is scared, so you can’t talk about your worries because worries are everywhere. When everyone you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/veronica-rossi/we-are-all-hurting-and-missing-people-everyone-is-scared-so-you-can-t/) [Veronica Rossi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/veronica-rossi/) > [I Miss The Old Me](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-miss-the-old-me/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“I am not depressed. I just miss people around me.. I am sure of this: missing people is good in a way.. It helps…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saravana-kumar-murugan/i-am-not-depressed-i-just-miss-people-around-me-i-am-sure-of-this/) [Saravana Kumar Murugan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saravana-kumar-murugan/) > [Crimes are being committed 24/7, 365 days a year. My show aired one hour a day, and then a repeat at 2 a.m. So…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nancy-grace/crimes-are-being-committed-24-7-365-days-a-year-my-show-aired-one/) [Nancy Grace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nancy-grace/) > [Sometimes touring can warp reality because you're never in one place long enough to get a feel for it. You don't interact with people…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jason-mraz/sometimes-touring-can-warp-reality-because-you-re-never-in-one-place/) [Jason Mraz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jason-mraz/) > [There is something missing in Asian America. They're missing people to tell them, 'It's okay to be who you are - you belong. Just…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simu-liu/there-is-something-missing-in-asian-america-they-re-missing-people-to/) [Simu Liu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simu-liu/) > [I wonder if, as you get older, you stop missing people so fiercely. Maybe growing up is just focusing on what you've got, instead…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jodi-picoult/i-wonder-if-as-you-get-older-you-stop-missing-people-so-fiercely/) [Jodi Picoult](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jodi-picoult/) > [Missing people who treated you like garbage is very strange and dumb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/priyanka/missing-people-who-treated-you-like-garbage-is-very-strange-and-dumb/) [Priyanka](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/priyanka/) > [“If you do not report the number of dead bodies found and missing people reported, it will eventually become known to the masses through…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-magee/if-you-do-not-report-the-number-of-dead-bodies-found-and-missing/) [Steven Magee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-magee/) > [“Why must we spend so much of our lives missing people instead of being with them?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexandra-monir/why-must-we-spend-so-much-of-our-lives-missing-people-instead-of/) [Alexandra Monir](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexandra-monir/) > [I'm tired of crying. I'm tired of yelling. I'm tired of being sad. I'm tired of pretending. I'm tired of being alone. I'm tired…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-m-tired-of-crying-i-m-tired-of-yelling-i-m-tired-of-being-sad-i-m/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) ## More by Craig Davidson > [“When you're a kid all you know is that your dad puts on his suit or overalls and vanishes from your life until nightfall.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/craig-davidson/when-you-re-a-kid-all-you-know-is-that-your-dad-puts-on-his-suit-or/) [Craig Davidson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/craig-davidson/) > [“It boiled down to this: it’s a lot harder to love than to hate. Harder to be there for those you love—to see them…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/craig-davidson/it-boiled-down-to-this-it-s-a-lot-harder-to-love-than-to-hate-harder/) [Craig Davidson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/craig-davidson/) > [Love is a sickness. Some kind of a pathogen existing above all explanation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/craig-davidson/love-is-a-sickness-some-kind-of-a-pathogen-existing-above-all/) [Craig Davidson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/craig-davidson/) > [“Some creatures live as stars do: burn hard and hot, feeding on those nearby but primarily upon themselves. Their lives an inferno and them…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/craig-davidson/some-creatures-live-as-stars-do-burn-hard-and-hot-feeding-on-those/) [Craig Davidson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/craig-davidson/) > [“She rode down the sidewalk, turned toward the shadow side of the street and melted into darkness. I didn't know it then, but after…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/craig-davidson/she-rode-down-the-sidewalk-turned-toward-the-shadow-side-of-the/) [Craig Davidson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/craig-davidson/) > [“So you're lost, uh? Happens a lot out here. You walk around for days, seeing things, losing your bearings, crying out for God, But…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/craig-davidson/so-you-re-lost-uh-happens-a-lot-out-here-you-walk-around-for-days/) [Craig Davidson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/craig-davidson/) > [“I figured a woman can't be understood the way a man can. Women have purposes men can't even imagine.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/craig-davidson/i-figured-a-woman-can-t-be-understood-the-way-a-man-can-women-have/) [Craig Davidson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/craig-davidson/) > [“Did you know that the Russians sent dogs into space? My mother told me this when I was a boy. Nobody knew the effects…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/craig-davidson/did-you-know-that-the-russians-sent-dogs-into-space-my-mother-told-me/) [Craig Davidson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/craig-davidson/) > [How deeply do any of us know our own selves? Ask yourself. We hold a picture of how we wish to be and hope…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/craig-davidson/how-deeply-do-any-of-us-know-our-own-selves-ask-yourself-we-hold-a/) [Craig Davidson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/craig-davidson/) > [“You can't hate your best friend for taking opportunities he'd been given. That would be the worst sort of hate, wouldn't it? Because it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/craig-davidson/you-can-t-hate-your-best-friend-for-taking-opportunities-he-d-been/) [Craig Davidson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/craig-davidson/) [Explore all 11 Craig Davidson quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/craig-davidson/) ## More Desolation quotes > [“ Desolation would not be the proper word to describe his feelings now; it was more the sense of emptiness he imagined he might…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shusaku-endo/desolation-would-not-be-the-proper-word-to-describe-his-feelings-now/) [Shusaku Endo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shusaku-endo/) > [“Then think of fire, It’s laughter, the music of splintering beams and glass, The flames reaching through the second story of a house almost…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/larry-levis/then-think-of-fire-it-s-laughter-the-music-of-splintering-beams-and/) [Larry Levis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/larry-levis/) > [They create a desolation and call it peace.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/calgacus/they-create-a-desolation-and-call-it-peace/) Calgacus > [There are houses in certain provincial towns whose aspect inspires melancholy, akin to that called forth by sombre cloisters, dreary moorlands, or the desolation…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/honor-de-balzac/there-are-houses-in-certain-provincial-towns-whose-aspect-inspires/) [Honore de Balzac](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/honor-de-balzac/) > [The Death of the contemporary forms of social order ought to gladden rather than trouble the soul. Yet what is frightening is that the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-herzen/the-death-of-the-contemporary-forms-of-social-order-ought-to-gladden/) [Alexander Herzen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-herzen/) > [The fountain of my heart dried up within me,-- With nought that loved me, and with nought to love, I stood upon the desert…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-robert-maturin/the-fountain-of-my-heart-dried-up-within-me-with-nought-that-loved-me/) [Charles Robert Maturin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-robert-maturin/) > [All consolation that does not come from God is but desolation; when the soul has learned to receive no comfort but in God only,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeanne-marie-bouvier-de-la-motte-guyon/all-consolation-that-does-not-come-from-god-is-but-desolation-when/) [Jeanne Marie Bouvier de la Motte Guyon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeanne-marie-bouvier-de-la-motte-guyon/) > [“I am back in my beloved city. The scene of desolation fills my eyes with tears. At every step my distress and agitation increases.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/khushwant-singh/i-am-back-in-my-beloved-city-the-scene-of-desolation-fills-my-eyes/) [Khushwant Singh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/khushwant-singh/) > [“The effect of this cannot be understood without being there. The beauty of it cannot be understood, either, and when you see beauty in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-vandermeer/the-effect-of-this-cannot-be-understood-without-being-there-the/) [Jeff VanderMeer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeff-vandermeer/) > [Stand in despair anywhere old-growth forest has been clear-felled. All life has been replaced by blackened, poisoned desolation. Animals and birds have either fled…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-cundall/stand-in-despair-anywhere-old-growth-forest-has-been-clear-felled-all/) [Peter Cundall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-cundall/) > [“Upon him I will visit famine and a fire, Till all around him desolation rings And all the demons in the outer dark Look…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-rothfuss/upon-him-i-will-visit-famine-and-a-fire-till-all-around-him/) [Patrick Rothfuss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-rothfuss/) > [Glory falls around us as we sob a dirge of desolation on the Cross](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maya-angelou/glory-falls-around-us-as-we-sob-a-dirge-of-desolation-on-the-cross/) [Maya Angelou](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maya-angelou/) > [Poetry has always mattered, through human history, through all kinds of cultures, all kinds of violence and human desolation, as well as periods of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adrienne-rich/poetry-has-always-mattered-through-human-history-through-all-kinds-of/) [Adrienne Rich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adrienne-rich/) > [It is a time when one’s spirit is subdued and sad, one knows not why; when the past seems a storm-swept desolation, life a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-twain/it-is-a-time-when-one-s-spirit-is-subdued-and-sad-one-knows-not-why/) [Mark Twain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-twain/) > [In cities, people go to work and all walk there together, like some arterial flow. And there's a certain desolation about it, an alienation…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roy-harper/in-cities-people-go-to-work-and-all-walk-there-together-like-some/) [Roy Harper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roy-harper/) [Browse all 198 Desolation quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/desolation/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“A sense of desolation settled within me: a cold, slimy stone lodged under my lungs. There was nothing happy about the woods, I thought, especially at night.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Craig Davidson" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/craig-davidson/a-sense-of-desolation-settled-within-me-a-cold-slimy-stone-lodged/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Desolation" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/craig-davidson/a-sense-of-desolation-settled-within-me-a-cold-slimy-stone-lodged/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e7f/craig-davidson-40443_desolation_a-sense-of-desolation-settled-within-me_716.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e7f/craig-davidson-40443_desolation_a-sense-of-desolation-settled-within-me_716.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e7f/craig-davidson-40443_desolation_a-sense-of-desolation-settled-within-me_716.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“A sense of desolation settled within me: a cold, slimy stone lodged under my lungs. There was nothing happy…” — Craig Davidson", "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": "Craig Davidson", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/craig-davidson/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“A sense of desolation settled within...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/craig-davidson/a-sense-of-desolation-settled-within-me-a-cold-slimy-stone-lodged/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/craig-davidson/a-sense-of-desolation-settled-within-me-a-cold-slimy-stone-lodged/#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 } } ] } ```