--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: And when the firemen turned off the hose…" description: "\"And when the firemen turned off the hose and were standing in the wet, smoky room, Jim's Aunt, Miss. Prothero, came downstairs and peered in at them. J..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/098/dylan-thomas-1889_aunt_and-when-the-firemen-turned-off-the-hose_1734784.jpg" --- # And when the firemen turned off the hose and were standing… ![“And when the firemen turned off the hose and were standing in the wet, smoky room, Jim's Aunt, Miss. Prothero, came downstairs and peered in at them. Jim and I waited, very quietly, to hear what she would say to them. She said the right thing, always. She looked at the three tall firemen in their…” quote by Dylan Thomas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/098/dylan-thomas-1889_aunt_and-when-the-firemen-turned-off-the-hose_1734784.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/098/dylan-thomas-1889_aunt_and-when-the-firemen-turned-off-the-hose_1734784.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/098/dylan-thomas-1889_aunt_and-when-the-firemen-turned-off-the-hose_1734784.jpg) > “And when the firemen turned off the hose and were standing in the wet, smoky room, Jim's Aunt, Miss. Prothero, came downstairs and peered in at them. Jim and I waited, very quietly, to hear what she would say to them. She said the right thing, always. She looked at the three tall firemen in their shining helmets, standing among the smoke and cinders and dissolving snowballs, and she said, "Would you like anything to read?” [Dylan Thomas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dylan-thomas/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. A compassionate figure offers comfort in crisis, showing kindness can be a simple, unexpected gesture. **In simple terms:** Compassion appears in small acts during emergencies. Key Takeaway Offer help, even modestly. Themes compassion crisis humanity Mood hopeful empathetic Type narrative inspirational When to use this quote - disaster relief - hospital visits - community aid Key Concepts empathy service literary narrative Questions to Reflect On - How can small gestures change a tense situation? - When have you offered unexpected help? A Different Perspective Kindness may be overlooked amid chaos. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Aunt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/aunt/) [Fireman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fireman/) [Firemen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/firemen/) [Firemen Shining](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/firemen-shining-1463726/) [Firemen Turned](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/firemen-turned-1463724/) [Helmet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/helmet/) [Missing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/missing/) [Right thing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/right-thing/) [Rooms](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rooms/) [Said](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/said/) [Shining](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/shining/) [Smoky Room](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/smoky-room-1463725/) [Snowball](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/snowball/) [Standing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/standing/) [Tall Firemen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/tall-firemen-1463723/) [Three](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/three/) [Turned off](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/turned-off/) ## Related quotes > [“I never thought I'd get a second chance at a first time with you”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amy-andrews/i-never-thought-i-d-get-a-second-chance-at-a-first-time-with-you/) [Amy Andrews](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amy-andrews/) > [Firemen don't talk about whether a burning warehouse is worth saving.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sebastian-junger/firemen-don-t-talk-about-whether-a-burning-warehouse-is-worth-saving/) [Sebastian Junger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sebastian-junger/) > [We don't take care of our teachers and our cops and our firemen. They should be at the top of our list.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brad-garrett/we-don-t-take-care-of-our-teachers-and-our-cops-and-our-firemen-they/) [Brad Garrett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brad-garrett/) > [“It's as if they saw a house burning and determined that the bigger the fire, the more firemen are present, and then concluded that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/uffe-ravnskov/it-s-as-if-they-saw-a-house-burning-and-determined-that-the-bigger/) [Uffe Ravnskov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/uffe-ravnskov/) > [“Our department takes 1,120 calls every day. Do you know how many of the calls the public expects perfection on? 1,120. Nobody calls the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-eversole/our-department-takes-1-120-calls-every-day-do-you-know-how-many-of/) [John Eversole](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-eversole/) > [Firemen have the coolest toys ever!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-savage/firemen-have-the-coolest-toys-ever/) [Adam Savage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-savage/) > [My friends are the kind that if the house was burning down, theyd be making smores, and hitting on the firemen.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/my-friends-are-the-kind-that-if-the-house-was-burning-down-theyd-be/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Brave people are the firemen who run into the burning building. That's brave.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-edwards/brave-people-are-the-firemen-who-run-into-the-burning-building-that-s/) [Elizabeth Edwards](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-edwards/) > [“I had to stop him from arresting an old lady who let her dog urinate against the fire hydrant that was in front of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lee-goldberg/i-had-to-stop-him-from-arresting-an-old-lady-who-let-her-dog-urinate/) [Lee Goldberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lee-goldberg/) > [“I think you just made me forget my own name. Not even amnesia managed that.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amy-andrews/i-think-you-just-made-me-forget-my-own-name-not-even-amnesia-managed/) [Amy Andrews](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amy-andrews/) > [“You said he was a perfectly adequate lover." "Perfectly adequate? I dont suppose I ever said that about you?" She only had to look…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amy-andrews/you-said-he-was-a-perfectly-adequate-lover-perfectly-adequate-i-dont/) [Amy Andrews](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amy-andrews/) > [I grew up in a family of firemen and cops.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bonnie-somerville/i-grew-up-in-a-family-of-firemen-and-cops/) [Bonnie Somerville](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bonnie-somerville/) > [“One of the other firemen joined us. His damp T-shirt clung to a stomach that had required far too many sit-ups, but I enjoyed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurell-k-hamilton/one-of-the-other-firemen-joined-us-his-damp-t-shirt-clung-to-a/) [Laurell K. Hamilton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurell-k-hamilton/) > [“One person's strange is another person's normal.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dani-harper/one-person-s-strange-is-another-person-s-normal/) [Dani Harper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dani-harper/) > [“To getting laid and fighting fires.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amy-andrews/to-getting-laid-and-fighting-fires/) [Amy Andrews](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amy-andrews/) ## More by Dylan Thomas > [I liked the taste of beer, its live, white lather, its brass-bright depths, the sudden world through the wet-brown walls of the glass, the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dylan-thomas/i-liked-the-taste-of-beer-its-live-white-lather-its-brass-bright/) [Dylan Thomas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dylan-thomas/) > [There is only one position for an artist anywhere; and that is upright.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dylan-thomas/there-is-only-one-position-for-an-artist-anywhere-and-that-is-upright/) [Dylan Thomas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dylan-thomas/) > [“Thousands of miles,' I said. It's Rhosilli, USA. We're going to camp on a bit of rock that wobbles in the winds.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dylan-thomas/thousands-of-miles-i-said-it-s-rhosilli-usa-we-re-going-to-camp-on-a/) [Dylan Thomas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dylan-thomas/) > [One Christmas was so much like another, in those years around the sea-town corner now and out of all sound except the distant speaking…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dylan-thomas/one-christmas-was-so-much-like-another-in-those-years-around-the-sea/) [Dylan Thomas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dylan-thomas/) > [I hold a beast, an angel, and a madman in me, and my enquiry is as to their working, and my problem is their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dylan-thomas/i-hold-a-beast-an-angel-and-a-madman-in-me-and-my-enquiry-is-as-to/) [Dylan Thomas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dylan-thomas/) > [Youth calls to age across the tired years: 'What have you found,' he cries, 'what have you sought?" 'What have you found,' age answers…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dylan-thomas/youth-calls-to-age-across-the-tired-years-what-have-you-found-he/) [Dylan Thomas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dylan-thomas/) > [Do not go gentle into that goodnight, rage, rage against the dying of the light.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dylan-thomas/do-not-go-gentle-into-that-goodnight-rage-rage-against-the-dying-of/) [Dylan Thomas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dylan-thomas/) > [To begin, at the beginning...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dylan-thomas/to-begin-at-the-beginning/) [Dylan Thomas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dylan-thomas/) > [A born writer is born scrofulous; his career is an accident dictated by physical or circumstantial disabilities.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dylan-thomas/a-born-writer-is-born-scrofulous-his-career-is-an-accident-dictated/) [Dylan Thomas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dylan-thomas/) > [Rhianon, he said, hold my hand, Rhianon. She did not hear him, but stood over his bed and fixed him with an unbroken sorrow.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dylan-thomas/rhianon-he-said-hold-my-hand-rhianon-she-did-not-hear-him-but-stood/) [Dylan Thomas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dylan-thomas/) > [I know in London a Welsh hairdresser who has striven so vehemently to abolish his accent that he sounds like a man speaking with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dylan-thomas/i-know-in-london-a-welsh-hairdresser-who-has-striven-so-vehemently-to/) [Dylan Thomas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dylan-thomas/) > [Dark is a way and light is a place, Heaven that never was Nor will be ever is always true "Poem on His Birthday](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dylan-thomas/dark-is-a-way-and-light-is-a-place-heaven-that-never-was-nor-will-be/) [Dylan Thomas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dylan-thomas/) > [And now, gentlemen, like your manners, I must leave you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dylan-thomas/and-now-gentlemen-like-your-manners-i-must-leave-you/) [Dylan Thomas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dylan-thomas/) > [Now behind the eyes and secrets of the dreamers in the streets rocked to sleep by the sea, see the titbits and topsyturvies, bobs…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dylan-thomas/now-behind-the-eyes-and-secrets-of-the-dreamers-in-the-streets-rocked/) [Dylan Thomas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dylan-thomas/) > [I believe in New Yorkers. Whether they’ve ever questioned the dream in which they live, I wouldn’t know, because I won’t ever dare ask…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dylan-thomas/i-believe-in-new-yorkers-whether-they-ve-ever-questioned-the-dream-in/) [Dylan Thomas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dylan-thomas/) [Explore all 201 Dylan Thomas quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dylan-thomas/) ## More Aunt quotes > [“My aunt Carol hasn’t heard her say a word in the whole six years and three months of Grace’s life—not a single syllable. Carol…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lauren-oliver/my-aunt-carol-hasn-t-heard-her-say-a-word-in-the-whole-six-years-and/) [Lauren Oliver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lauren-oliver/) > [Your aunt and uncle will be proud, though, won't they?" said Hermione as they got off the train and joined the crowd thronging toward…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/your-aunt-and-uncle-will-be-proud-though-won-t-they-said-hermione-as/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I was painfully shy, so my aunt suggested to my mum that me and my brother go to Stage 84, a performing arts school…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christian-cooke/i-was-painfully-shy-so-my-aunt-suggested-to-my-mum-that-me-and-my/) [Christian Cooke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christian-cooke/) > [“Quin took on the air of someone who has just realized it's time for the yearly visit to the spinster great-aunt in a desperate…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amy-fecteau/quin-took-on-the-air-of-someone-who-has-just-realized-it-s-time-for/) [Amy Fecteau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amy-fecteau/) > [My aunt and uncle are clearly civilians.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jimmy-kimmel/my-aunt-and-uncle-are-clearly-civilians/) [Jimmy Kimmel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jimmy-kimmel/) > [“Aunt Helen Beck had many intentions about her death. She was about being dead the way some people are about being British - she…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-mccracken/aunt-helen-beck-had-many-intentions-about-her-death-she-was-about/) [Elizabeth McCracken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-mccracken/) > [I'll just do a round around of the house and make sure the rest of the family are fast asleep. We don't want that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kerstin-gier/i-ll-just-do-a-round-around-of-the-house-and-make-sure-the-rest-of/) [Kerstin Gier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kerstin-gier/) > [In the summer of 1964, my sister and I went to South Ballston, Virginia, to stay with my aunt and her kids. They passed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-p-jones/in-the-summer-of-1964-my-sister-and-i-went-to-south-ballston-virginia/) [Edward P. Jones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-p-jones/) > [“I look like Barbara Bush in drag." Aunt Jettie”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/molly-harper/i-look-like-barbara-bush-in-drag-aunt-jettie/) [Molly Harper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/molly-harper/) > [I only wanted Uncle Vernon standing by his own car (a Hudson) on a clear day, I got him and the car. Ialso got…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lee-friedlander/i-only-wanted-uncle-vernon-standing-by-his-own-car-a-hudson-on-a/) [Lee Friedlander](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lee-friedlander/) > [Both the five-year-olds looked at me with bewilderment and a bit of fearful uncertainty. I had a sudden horrifying image of the woman I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-gilbert/both-the-five-year-olds-looked-at-me-with-bewilderment-and-a-bit-of/) [Elizabeth Gilbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-gilbert/) > [My aunt got me interested in journalism - she found an old typewriter, had it worked over, put it on the dining room table,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dan-jenkins/my-aunt-got-me-interested-in-journalism-she-found-an-old-typewriter/) [Dan Jenkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dan-jenkins/) > [This kind of thing always amazed Ginny--people who just walked away from institutions. People who left school when they didn't see the point. Aunt…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maureen-johnson/this-kind-of-thing-always-amazed-ginny-people-who-just-walked-away/) [Maureen Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maureen-johnson/) > [“You will not be able to shelter her forever,” my aunt insists. “What will happen when you are gone someday, and all the suitable…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurie-forest/you-will-not-be-able-to-shelter-her-forever-my-aunt-insists-what-will/) [Laurie Forest](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurie-forest/) > [my sweet old etcetera aunt lucy during the recent war could and what is more did tell you just what everybody was fighting for,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/my-sweet-old-etcetera-aunt-lucy-during-the-recent-war-could-and-what/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) [Browse all 720 Aunt quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/aunt/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "And when the firemen turned off the hose and were standing in the wet, smoky room, Jim's Aunt, Miss. Prothero, came downstairs and peered in at them. Jim and I waited, very quietly, to hear what she would say to them. She said the right thing, always. She looked at the three tall firemen in their shining helmets, standing among the smoke and cinders and dissolving snowballs, and she said, \"Would you like anything to read?", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Dylan Thomas" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dylan-thomas/and-when-the-firemen-turned-off-the-hose-and-were-standing-in-the-wet/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Aunt" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dylan-thomas/and-when-the-firemen-turned-off-the-hose-and-were-standing-in-the-wet/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/098/dylan-thomas-1889_aunt_and-when-the-firemen-turned-off-the-hose_1734784.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/098/dylan-thomas-1889_aunt_and-when-the-firemen-turned-off-the-hose_1734784.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/098/dylan-thomas-1889_aunt_and-when-the-firemen-turned-off-the-hose_1734784.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“And when the firemen turned off the hose and were standing in the wet, smoky room, Jim's Aunt, Miss…” — Dylan Thomas", "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": "Dylan Thomas", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dylan-thomas/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "And when the firemen turned off...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dylan-thomas/and-when-the-firemen-turned-off-the-hose-and-were-standing-in-the-wet/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dylan-thomas/and-when-the-firemen-turned-off-the-hose-and-were-standing-in-the-wet/#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 } } ] } ```