---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Air grew heavy, damp, almost solid. I was…"
description: "\"Air grew heavy, damp, almost solid. I was breathing bricks.\" — Khaled Hosseini"
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e4b/khaled-hosseini-251_air_air-grew-heavy-damp-almost-solid-i-was-b_1152803.png"
---

#  Air grew heavy, damp, almost solid. I was breathing bricks.

![“Air grew heavy, damp, almost solid. I was breathing bricks.” quote by Khaled Hosseini](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e4b/khaled-hosseini-251_air_air-grew-heavy-damp-almost-solid-i-was-b_1152803.png)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e4b/khaled-hosseini-251_air_air-grew-heavy-damp-almost-solid-i-was-b_1152803.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e4b/khaled-hosseini-251_air_air-grew-heavy-damp-almost-solid-i-was-b_1152803.png)

> “Air grew heavy, damp, almost solid. I was breathing bricks.”

[Khaled Hosseini](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/khaled-hosseini/)

## About This Quote

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

The atmosphere feels oppressive, making breathing feel as heavy as solid objects.

**In simple terms:** Heavy air feels like breathing bricks.

Key Takeaway

Notice how environment affects mood.

Themes

environment perception stress

Mood

reflective moody

Type

literary descriptive

When to use this quote

- writing
- poetry
- mindfulness
- stress management

Key Concepts

sensory description metaphor

Questions to Reflect On

- How does describing air as bricks affect your perception?
- What environments make you feel heavy?

A Different Perspective

Metaphor may exaggerate literal experience.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Air](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/air/) [Air Grew](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/air-grew-3134094/) [Breathing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/breathing/) [Breathing Bricks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/breathing-bricks-3266623/) [Bricks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bricks/) [Damp Solid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/damp-solid-3266625/) [Grew](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/grew/) [Grew Heavy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/grew-heavy-3266624/) [Heavy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/heavy/) [Heavy Damp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/heavy-damp-3266622/)

## Related quotes

> [“He was so close to her then that they owned every molecule of air in the tiny room and the air grew heavy with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ann-patchett/he-was-so-close-to-her-then-that-they-owned-every-molecule-of-air-in/)

[Ann Patchett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ann-patchett/)

> [The sky darkened, the air grew colder, but he didn't mind. It didn't occur to him to move. This was the right place. This…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pat-barker/the-sky-darkened-the-air-grew-colder-but-he-didn-t-mind-it-didn-t/)

[Pat Barker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pat-barker/)

> [“Then, methought, the air grew denser, perfumed from an unseen censer”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edgar-allan-poe/then-methought-the-air-grew-denser-perfumed-from-an-unseen-censer/)

[Edgar Allan Poe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edgar-allan-poe/)

> [You have those walls up all around you...Come a day you gonna want to tear them down brick by brick and gonna find that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacqueline-woodson/you-have-those-walls-up-all-around-you-come-a-day-you-gonna-want-to/)

[Jacqueline Woodson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacqueline-woodson/)

> [Build your life brick upon brick, Live a life of truth, And you will look back on a life of truth. Live a life…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ming-dao-deng/build-your-life-brick-upon-brick-live-a-life-of-truth-and-you-will/)

[Ming-Dao Deng](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ming-dao-deng/)

> [Rebuilding a network is a slow, brick-by-brick process. It's not just creating a hit show - it's building shows to back up that hit…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leslie-moonves/rebuilding-a-network-is-a-slow-brick-by-brick-process-it-s-not-just/)

[Leslie Moonves](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leslie-moonves/)

> [I still have the desire to do the job of acting. It's just a matter of whether I'll be allowed to do the job…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-coleman/i-still-have-the-desire-to-do-the-job-of-acting-it-s-just-a-matter-of/)

[Gary Coleman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-coleman/)

> [“Savannah gray bricks”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-kay-andrews/savannah-gray-bricks/)

[Mary Kay Andrews](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-kay-andrews/)

> [I am always really buzzed after each performance, and at around one in the morning, Ill hit a brick wall and need to sleep.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hattie-morahan/i-am-always-really-buzzed-after-each-performance-and-at-around-one-in/)

[Hattie Morahan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hattie-morahan/)

> [The Brick House was one of the toughest joints I ever played in ... Guys would drink and fight one another like circle saws.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louis-armstrong/the-brick-house-was-one-of-the-toughest-joints-i-ever-played-in-guys/)

[Louis Armstrong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louis-armstrong/)

> [I am the enfant terrible of literature and science. If I cannot, and I know I cannot, get the literary and scientific bigwigs to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-butler/i-am-the-enfant-terrible-of-literature-and-science-if-i-cannot-and-i/)

[Samuel Butler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-butler/)

> [Even if you tried to extinguish your personality, what is left in the story will reflect it, perhaps by its negation. Our lives provide…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aleksandar-hemon/even-if-you-tried-to-extinguish-your-personality-what-is-left-in-the/)

[Aleksandar Hemon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aleksandar-hemon/)

> [LEGO is universal. So many people enjoy it, from all different walks of life, all different ages, all different cultures. When I was in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nathan-sawaya/lego-is-universal-so-many-people-enjoy-it-from-all-different-walks-of/)

[Nathan Sawaya](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nathan-sawaya/)

> [That city is well fortified which has a wall of men instead of brick.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/that-city-is-well-fortified-which-has-a-wall-of-men-instead-of-brick/)

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

> [ Leave a cavity behind the \[wall\] facings, and on the inside build walls two feet thick, made of red dimension stone or burnt brick… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcus-vitruvius-pollio/leave-a-cavity-behind-the-wall-facings-and-on-the-inside-build-walls/)

[Marcus Vitruvius Pollio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcus-vitruvius-pollio/)

## More by Khaled Hosseini

> [“Winter was every kid’s favorite season in Kabul, at least those whose fathers could afford to buy a good iron stove. The reason was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/khaled-hosseini/winter-was-every-kid-s-favorite-season-in-kabul-at-least-those-whose/)

[Khaled Hosseini](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/khaled-hosseini/)

> [“Their fights didn’t so much end as dissipate, like a drop of ink in a bowl of water, with a residual taint that lingered.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/khaled-hosseini/their-fights-didn-t-so-much-end-as-dissipate-like-a-drop-of-ink-in-a/)

[Khaled Hosseini](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/khaled-hosseini/)

> [“I think that everything he did, feeding the poor, giving money to friends in need, it was all a way of redeeming himself. And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/khaled-hosseini/i-think-that-everything-he-did-feeding-the-poor-giving-money-to/)

[Khaled Hosseini](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/khaled-hosseini/)

> [“it always falls on the sober to pay for the sins of the drunk.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/khaled-hosseini/it-always-falls-on-the-sober-to-pay-for-the-sins-of-the-drunk/)

[Khaled Hosseini](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/khaled-hosseini/)

> [“Mariam knew that life for the most part had been unkind to her. But as she walked the final twenty paces, she could not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/khaled-hosseini/mariam-knew-that-life-for-the-most-part-had-been-unkind-to-her-but-as/)

[Khaled Hosseini](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/khaled-hosseini/)

> [“I pray. I pray that my sins have not caught up with me the way I'd always feared they would.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/khaled-hosseini/i-pray-i-pray-that-my-sins-have-not-caught-up-with-me-the-way-i-d/)

[Khaled Hosseini](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/khaled-hosseini/)

> [“shoes: that putting them on a bed invited death into the family, that a quarrel would follow if one put on the left shoe…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/khaled-hosseini/shoes-that-putting-them-on-a-bed-invited-death-into-the-family-that-a/)

[Khaled Hosseini](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/khaled-hosseini/)

> [I have a theory about marriage, Monsieur Boustouler. And it's that nearly always you will know within two weeks if it's going to work.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/khaled-hosseini/i-have-a-theory-about-marriage-monsieur-boustouler-and-it-s-that/)

[Khaled Hosseini](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/khaled-hosseini/)

> [The short of it is, as an aspiring writer, there is nothing as damaging to your credibility as saying that you don't like to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/khaled-hosseini/the-short-of-it-is-as-an-aspiring-writer-there-is-nothing-as-damaging/)

[Khaled Hosseini](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/khaled-hosseini/)

> [Throughout the last century there were multiple attempts at giving Afghan women more autonomy, to change marriage laws, to abolish the practice of bride…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/khaled-hosseini/throughout-the-last-century-there-were-multiple-attempts-at-giving/)

[Khaled Hosseini](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/khaled-hosseini/)

> [At that moment, she cannot think of a more reckless, irrational thing than choosing to become a parent.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/khaled-hosseini/at-that-moment-she-cannot-think-of-a-more-reckless-irrational-thing/)

[Khaled Hosseini](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/khaled-hosseini/)

> [“He says this is war. There is no shame in war. Tell him he's wrong. War doesn't negate decency. It demands it, even more…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/khaled-hosseini/he-says-this-is-war-there-is-no-shame-in-war-tell-him-he-s-wrong-war/)

[Khaled Hosseini](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/khaled-hosseini/)

> [For many people in the west, Afghanistan is synonymous with the Soviet war and the Taliban. I wanted to remind people that Afghans had…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/khaled-hosseini/for-many-people-in-the-west-afghanistan-is-synonymous-with-the-soviet/)

[Khaled Hosseini](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/khaled-hosseini/)

> [Educate yourself, learn about what refugees face when they don't have homes, after they have lost everything.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/khaled-hosseini/educate-yourself-learn-about-what-refugees-face-when-they-don-t-have/)

[Khaled Hosseini](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/khaled-hosseini/)

> [“Rahim Khan laughed. “Children aren’t coloring books. You don’t get to fill them with your favorite colors.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/khaled-hosseini/rahim-khan-laughed-children-aren-t-coloring-books-you-don-t-get-to/)

[Khaled Hosseini](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/khaled-hosseini/)

[Explore all 697 Khaled Hosseini quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/khaled-hosseini/)

## More Air quotes

> [I will be a tireless advocate for our District's defense priorities including Sheppard Air Force Base, Pantex, Bell Helicopter, universities conducting important research, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ronny-jackson/i-will-be-a-tireless-advocate-for-our-district-s-defense-priorities/)

[Ronny Jackson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ronny-jackson/)

> [I have lifted my plane . . . for perhaps a thousand flights and I have never felt her wheels glide from the Earth…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/beryl-markham/i-have-lifted-my-plane-for-perhaps-a-thousand-flights-and-i-have/)

[Beryl Markham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/beryl-markham/)

> [If U.S. air, naval, missile, and ground forces were not in and around Korea, and if we were not treaty-bound to fight alongside South…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pat-buchanan/if-u-s-air-naval-missile-and-ground-forces-were-not-in-and-around/)

[Pat Buchanan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pat-buchanan/)

> [The cooler days have brought a wistful mood upon him. The smell of coalsmoke in the air at night. Old times, dead years. For…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cormac-mccarthy/the-cooler-days-have-brought-a-wistful-mood-upon-him-the-smell-of/)

[Cormac McCarthy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cormac-mccarthy/)

> [It's easy to say, let's go in and get the bad guys. But you have a divided country of Sunnis and Shias. The United…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tulsi-gabbard/it-s-easy-to-say-let-s-go-in-and-get-the-bad-guys-but-you-have-a/)

[Tulsi Gabbard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tulsi-gabbard/)

> [I'm a candle flame that sways in currents of air you can't see. You need to be the one who steadies me to burn.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nadine-gordimer/i-m-a-candle-flame-that-sways-in-currents-of-air-you-can-t-see-you/)

[Nadine Gordimer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nadine-gordimer/)

> [It is sometimes said that scientists are unromantic, that their passion to figure out robs the world of beauty and mystery. But is it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-sagan/it-is-sometimes-said-that-scientists-are-unromantic-that-their/)

[Carl Sagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-sagan/)

> [ Just between you and me, shouldn’t the World Bank be encouraging MORE migration of the dirty industries to the LDCs \[Less Developed Countries\]?... I… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lawrence-summers/just-between-you-and-me-shouldn-t-the-world-bank-be-encouraging-more/)

[Lawrence Summers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lawrence-summers/)

> [After a few mouthfuls of moon-flavored air, even the stubbornly drowsy can find themselves wide-eyed.. All the normal noises of life were gone, leaving…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/n-d-wilson/after-a-few-mouthfuls-of-moon-flavored-air-even-the-stubbornly-drowsy/)

[N.D. Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/n-d-wilson/)

> [There was a little nook on Air Force Two that contained the vice presidential seal, and I would sort of wedge myself in there…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jill-biden/there-was-a-little-nook-on-air-force-two-that-contained-the-vice/)

[Jill Biden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jill-biden/)

> [Words are substance strange. Speak one and the air ripples into another's ears. Write one and the eye laps it up. But the sense…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dan-beachy-quick/words-are-substance-strange-speak-one-and-the-air-ripples-into/)

[Dan Beachy-Quick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dan-beachy-quick/)

> [ \[A\]s you partake of the world's bill of fare, that's darned good advice to follow. Do a lot of spitting out the hot air.… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dr-seuss/a-s-you-partake-of-the-world-s-bill-of-fare-that-s-darned-good-advice/)

[Dr. Seuss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dr-seuss/)

> [...As the disparity between the rich and the poor grows, the fight to corner resources is intensifying. To push through their "sweetheart deals," to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arundhati-roy/as-the-disparity-between-the-rich-and-the-poor-grows-the-fight-to/)

[Arundhati Roy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arundhati-roy/)

> [Washington bureaucrats have classified the very air we exhale as a pollutant and have gone unchallenged in this incredible assertion. The logical consequence is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ron-paul/washington-bureaucrats-have-classified-the-very-air-we-exhale-as-a/)

[Ron Paul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ron-paul/)

> [“It is unnatural to fear something natural.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-magee/it-is-unnatural-to-fear-something-natural/)

[Steven Magee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-magee/)

[Browse all 6,278 Air quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/air/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "Air grew heavy, damp, almost solid. I was breathing bricks.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Khaled Hosseini"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/khaled-hosseini/air-grew-heavy-damp-almost-solid-i-was-breathing-bricks/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Air"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/khaled-hosseini/air-grew-heavy-damp-almost-solid-i-was-breathing-bricks/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e4b/khaled-hosseini-251_air_air-grew-heavy-damp-almost-solid-i-was-b_1152803.png",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e4b/khaled-hosseini-251_air_air-grew-heavy-damp-almost-solid-i-was-b_1152803.png",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e4b/khaled-hosseini-251_air_air-grew-heavy-damp-almost-solid-i-was-b_1152803.png",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“Air grew heavy, damp, almost solid. I was breathing bricks.” — Khaled Hosseini",
                "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": "Khaled Hosseini",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/khaled-hosseini/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "Air grew heavy, damp, almost solid....",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/khaled-hosseini/air-grew-heavy-damp-almost-solid-i-was-breathing-bricks/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/khaled-hosseini/air-grew-heavy-damp-almost-solid-i-was-breathing-bricks/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
