--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: It felt like everything was rising up in…" description: "\"It felt like everything was rising up in me, like I was drowning in this weirdly painful joy, but I couldn't say it back. I just looked at him and let ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7ef/john-green-12_drowning_it-felt-like-everything-was-rising-up-in_1616161.jpg" --- # It felt like everything was rising up in me, like I was… ![“It felt like everything was rising up in me, like I was drowning in this weirdly painful joy, but I couldn't say it back. I just looked at him and let him look at me until he nodded, lips pursed and turned away, placing the side of his head against the window.” quote by John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7ef/john-green-12_drowning_it-felt-like-everything-was-rising-up-in_1616161.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7ef/john-green-12_drowning_it-felt-like-everything-was-rising-up-in_1616161.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7ef/john-green-12_drowning_it-felt-like-everything-was-rising-up-in_1616161.jpg) > “It felt like everything was rising up in me, like I was drowning in this weirdly painful joy, but I couldn't say it back. I just looked at him and let him look at me until he nodded, lips pursed and turned away, placing the side of his head against the window.” [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) ## 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 experiences an intense, painful joy that he cannot articulate, sharing a silent, emotional connection with another person. **In simple terms:** Intense joy mixed with pain, unspoken. Key Takeaway Embrace and express complex emotions. Themes emotion connection joy pain silence Mood melancholic hopeful Type literary personal reflection When to use this quote - romantic moments - friendship - grief processing - self‑reflection - artistic expression Key Concepts unspoken communication emotional intensity personal vulnerability Questions to Reflect On - How do you convey mixed emotions without words? - When have you felt joy and pain together? A Different Perspective Words may fail to capture deep feeling. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Hazel grace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hazel-grace/) [Joy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/joy/) [Lips](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lips/) [Rising up](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rising-up/) ## Related quotes > [“It felt like everything was rising up in me, like i was drowning in this weirdly painful joy.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/it-felt-like-everything-was-rising-up-in-me-like-i-was-drowning-in/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [This is one moment, / But know that another / Shall pierce you with a sudden painful joy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/this-is-one-moment-but-know-that-another-shall-pierce-you-with-a/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Living was a dangerous past-time, and often quite painful—but there was also such joy in living, such beauty, things that one would otherwise never…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/living-was-a-dangerous-past-time-and-often-quite-painful-but-there-2/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“I read: This is one moment, / But know that another / Shall pierce you with a sudden painful joy. I started to cry.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeanette-winterson/i-read-this-is-one-moment-but-know-that-another-shall-pierce-you-with/) [Jeanette Winterson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeanette-winterson/) > [Living was a dangerous past-time, and often quite painful—but there was also such joy in living, such beauty, things that one would otherwise never…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-butcher/living-was-a-dangerous-past-time-and-often-quite-painful-but-there/) [Jim Butcher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-butcher/) > [“Janeway had thought her heart full, but now it overflowed. For the rest of her life, she knew, she would remember this: walking down…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christie-golden/janeway-had-thought-her-heart-full-but-now-it-overflowed-for-the-rest/) [Christie Golden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christie-golden/) > [As the tide washed in, the Dutch Tulip Man faced the Ocean: "Conjoiner rejoinder poisoner concealer revelator. Look at it, rising up and rising…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/as-the-tide-washed-in-the-dutch-tulip-man-faced-the-ocean-conjoiner-2/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [“its a metephor, see: you put the killing thing right between your teeth but you dont give it the power to do its killing.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/its-a-metephor-see-you-put-the-killing-thing-right-between-your-teeth/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [He wasn't perfect or anything. He wasn;t your fairytale prince charming or whatever. He tried to be like that sometimes,but i liked him best…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/he-wasn-t-perfect-or-anything-he-wasn-t-your-fairytale-prince/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [“What a slut time is. She screws with everybody.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/what-a-slut-time-is-she-screws-with-everybody/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [“You do not know how to shut me up, Hazel Grace.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/you-do-not-know-how-to-shut-me-up-hazel-grace/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [Hi, I’m at the Speedway at Eighty-sixth and Ditch, and I need an ambulance. The great love of my life has a malfunctioning G-tube.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/hi-i-m-at-the-speedway-at-eighty-sixth-and-ditch-and-i-need-an/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [“The walk felt long, but I kept telling my lungs to shut up, that they were strong, that they could do this. I could…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/the-walk-felt-long-but-i-kept-telling-my-lungs-to-shut-up-that-they/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [As I recall, you promised to CALL when you finished the book, not text.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/as-i-recall-you-promised-to-call-when-you-finished-the-book-not-text/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [“Oh I would'nt mind Hazel Grace.It would be a privilege to have my heart broken by you”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/oh-i-would-nt-mind-hazel-grace-it-would-be-a-privilege-to-have-my/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) ## More by John Green > [Issac:"I dislike living in a world without Augustus Waters." Computer: "I don't understand-" Issac: "Me neither. Pause](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/issac-i-dislike-living-in-a-world-without-augustus-waters-computer-i/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [“I just want to stay away from people and read books and think”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/i-just-want-to-stay-away-from-people-and-read-books-and-think/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [She smiled with all the delight of a kid on Christmas morning and said, "Y'all smoke to enjoy it. I smoke to die." -…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/she-smiled-with-all-the-delight-of-a-kid-on-christmas-morning-and/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [A Margo for each of us--and each more mirror than window.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/a-margo-for-each-of-us-and-each-more-mirror-than-window/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [“No one ever says good-bye unless they want to see you again.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/no-one-ever-says-good-bye-unless-they-want-to-see-you-again/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [Neither novels or their readers benefit from any attempts to divine whether any facts hide inside a story. Such efforts attack the very idea…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/neither-novels-or-their-readers-benefit-from-any-attempts-to-divine/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [“Traffic's not too bad on Sheridan, and I'm cornering the car like it's the Indy 500, and we're listening to my favorite NMH song,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/traffic-s-not-too-bad-on-sheridan-and-i-m-cornering-the-car-like-it-s/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [“Praise God for good nurses.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/praise-god-for-good-nurses/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [So I was ugly. I was never fat, really, and I never wore headgear or had zits or anything. But I was ugly. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/so-i-was-ugly-i-was-never-fat-really-and-i-never-wore-headgear-or-had/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [Nothing has ever looked like that ever in all of human history.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/nothing-has-ever-looked-like-that-ever-in-all-of-human-history/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [“said to him quietly, as if I couldn’t hear or something. Dad was about to respond but I interrupted.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/said-to-him-quietly-as-if-i-couldn-t-hear-or-something-dad-was-about/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [I believe humans have souls, and I believe in the conservation of souls.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/i-believe-humans-have-souls-and-i-believe-in-the-conservation-of-souls/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [“He was hot. A nonhotboy stares at you relentlessly and it is, at best, awkward and, at worst, a form of assault. But a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/he-was-hot-a-nonhotboy-stares-at-you-relentlessly-and-it-is-at-best/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [I think if you keep the box closed long enough you do kill the cat, actually.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/i-think-if-you-keep-the-box-closed-long-enough-you-do-kill-the-cat/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [Imagining the future is a kind of nostalgia. (...) You spend your whole life stuck in the labyrinth, thinking about how you'll escape it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/imagining-the-future-is-a-kind-of-nostalgia-you-spend-your-whole-life/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) [Explore all 3,614 John Green quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) ## More Drowning quotes > [Our world is drowning in a sea of self-centeredness. You can make yourself quite unique right away by leaving this ocean of selfishness and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-bytheway/our-world-is-drowning-in-a-sea-of-self-centeredness-you-can-make/) [John Bytheway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-bytheway/) > [The world around us is an increasingly hostile and sinful place. Occasionally that splashes onto us, and perhaps, in the case of a few…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeffrey-r-holland/the-world-around-us-is-an-increasingly-hostile-and-sinful-place/) [Jeffrey R. Holland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeffrey-r-holland/) > [Beloved, let your eyes half close, and your heart beat Over my heart, and your hair fall over my breast, Drowning love's lonely hour…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-butler-yeats/beloved-let-your-eyes-half-close-and-your-heart-beat-over-my-heart/) [William Butler Yeats](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-butler-yeats/) > [“unsignificantly off the coast there was a splash quite unnoticed this was Icarus drowning”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-carlos-williams/unsignificantly-off-the-coast-there-was-a-splash-quite-unnoticed-this/) [William Carlos Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-carlos-williams/) > [Here is the boy, drowning.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-ness/here-is-the-boy-drowning/) [Patrick Ness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-ness/) > [You cannot sink someone else's end of the boat and still keep your own afloat.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-bower/you-cannot-sink-someone-else-s-end-of-the-boat-and-still-keep-your/) Charles Bower > [You can swim in life and seawater, but both are hard to swallow.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/austin-o-malley/you-can-swim-in-life-and-seawater-but-both-are-hard-to-swallow/) [Austin O'Malley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/austin-o-malley/) > [Why all these signs around us that make me doubt language and submerge me in meanings, drowning reality instead of extracting it from the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-luc-godard/why-all-these-signs-around-us-that-make-me-doubt-language-and/) [Jean-Luc Godard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-luc-godard/) > [There are many ways to drown, only the most obvious wave their arms as they're going under.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-flynn/there-are-many-ways-to-drown-only-the-most-obvious-wave-their-arms-as/) [Nick Flynn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-flynn/) > [I know that look, Blake. You are a drowning woman, and the only way out is down the aisle.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurell-k-hamilton/i-know-that-look-blake-you-are-a-drowning-woman-and-the-only-way-out/) [Laurell K. Hamilton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurell-k-hamilton/) > [“Shame isn't a quiet grey cloud, shame is a drowning man who claws his way on top of you, scratching and tearing your skin,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kirsty-eagar/shame-isn-t-a-quiet-grey-cloud-shame-is-a-drowning-man-who-claws-his/) [Kirsty Eagar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kirsty-eagar/) > [You are not drowned when u fall into the water but u are when you stay in there.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/psalmgreat/you-are-not-drowned-when-u-fall-into-the-water-but-u-are-when-you/) Psalmgreat > [“Sure, I wouldn’t be in range to do more than dial 911 if she slipped and hit her head and fell into the water…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-monroe/sure-i-wouldn-t-be-in-range-to-do-more-than-dial-911-if-she-slipped/) [Max Monroe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-monroe/) > [I'm always looking for sounds that are pleasing at the time. The sound of a helicopter is really annoying until you're drowning, and it's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-waits/i-m-always-looking-for-sounds-that-are-pleasing-at-the-time-the-sound/) [Tom Waits](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-waits/) > [I got to a point where I had no self-esteem and I just felt like I was drowning, and I had no way out.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/megan-anderson/i-got-to-a-point-where-i-had-no-self-esteem-and-i-just-felt-like-i/) [Megan Anderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/megan-anderson/) Browse all 868 Drowning quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "It felt like everything was rising up in me, like I was drowning in this weirdly painful joy, but I couldn't say it back. 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