--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: A permanent dull ache spread from my…" description: "\"“A permanent dull ache spread from my belly to my chest. I thought I could feel pinpricks of loneliness in the pads of my fingers, taste it in the back..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b91/susan-power-36716_quote_a-permanent-dull-ache-spread-from-my-bel_1794559.jpg" --- # A permanent dull ache spread from my belly to my chest. I… ![“A permanent dull ache spread from my belly to my chest. I thought I could feel pinpricks of loneliness in the pads of my fingers, taste it in the back of my mouth. Clara Miller must have been lonely too, longing to be touched. One day as she sat before her metal tub filled to the rim with sweet…” quote by Susan Power](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b91/susan-power-36716_quote_a-permanent-dull-ache-spread-from-my-bel_1794559.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b91/susan-power-36716_quote_a-permanent-dull-ache-spread-from-my-bel_1794559.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b91/susan-power-36716_quote_a-permanent-dull-ache-spread-from-my-bel_1794559.jpg) > ““A permanent dull ache spread from my belly to my chest. I thought I could feel pinpricks of loneliness in the pads of my fingers, taste it in the back of my mouth. Clara Miller must have been lonely too, longing to be touched. One day as she sat before her metal tub filled to the rim with sweet corn, she reached behind her head and unpinned her silver hair. It tumbled down her back like creamy lace cloak. She hiked her skirts to her knees and I could see she had removed her stockings. Her legs were heavy and milk white, solid as columns. She hiked her skirts higher, until they bunched in her lap. When I kissed the back of her neck she quivered, like the dying peasant I’d shot and killed a week before. Her silver hair smelled like smoke. Clara and I tangled together like the bale of wire resting beside the unrepaired chicken coop. We were shameless, falling to the ground, wading into the creek, making our way to her bed.”” [Susan Power](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-power/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. A vivid, sensual narrative explores loneliness, desire, and bodily connection, using tactile imagery and metaphor to convey deep emotional yearning. **In simple terms:** A sensual story about loneliness and desire using vivid imagery. Key Takeaway Embrace vulnerability to connect deeply with others. Themes loneliness desire body connection sensuality Mood intense raw poetic Type literary emotional sensory When to use this quote - intimate conversation - therapy session - artistic performance - personal reflection Key Concepts psychology embodiment metaphor Questions to Reflect On - How does physical intimacy alleviate emotional isolation? - What does the silver hair symbolize? A Different Perspective The graphic detail may alienate some readers or obscure broader themes. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Clara Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/clara-miller-1977045/) [Lonely Longing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lonely-longing-1977044/) [Longing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/longing/) [Longing Touched](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/longing-touched-1977042/) [Smoke Clara](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/smoke-clara-1977043/) [Sweet corn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sweet-corn/) ## Related quotes > [“Campfire Companions” poem: “What a longing they touched in me! Ah, would that I could lose myself in the wilderness, become a ghost of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-barrette/campfire-companions-poem-what-a-longing-they-touched-in-me-ah-would/) [Elizabeth Barrette](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-barrette/) > [What keeps faith cheerful is the extreme persistence of gentleness and humor. Gentleness is everywhere in daily life, a sign that faith rules through…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/garrison-keillor/what-keeps-faith-cheerful-is-the-extreme-persistence-of-gentleness/) [Garrison Keillor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/garrison-keillor/) > [“Lucretia Jane Price. A sweet name for a sweet lady that smelled of roses, spoke with a sweet drawl, and was surely made of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/linda-leigh-hargrove/lucretia-jane-price-a-sweet-name-for-a-sweet-lady-that-smelled-of/) [Linda Leigh hargrove](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/linda-leigh-hargrove/) > [“Elliot, that was amazing." The meal has been spectacular. We started with a salad of fennel, golden beets, and grapefruit. He did a veal…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stacey-ballis/elliot-that-was-amazing-the-meal-has-been-spectacular-we-started-with/) [Stacey Ballis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stacey-ballis/) > [You really get the most out of sweet corn if you pick the corn off the stalk and rush it to a pot of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-donaldson/you-really-get-the-most-out-of-sweet-corn-if-you-pick-the-corn-off/) [Sam Donaldson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-donaldson/) > [Why?” He tilted his head. “That’s a tricky one. Could it be your serenity, your quiet manner, your flawless fashion sense?” It did his…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/why-he-tilted-his-head-that-s-a-tricky-one-could-it-be-your-serenity/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [July is hollyhocks and hammocks, fireworks and vacations, hot and steamy weather, cool and refreshing swims, beach picnics, and vegetables all out of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-hersey/july-is-hollyhocks-and-hammocks-fireworks-and-vacations-hot-and/) [Jean Hersey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-hersey/) > [“Shucked and boiled in water, sweet corn is edible and nutritious; roasted in the husk in the hottest possible oven for forty minutes, shucked…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rex-stout/shucked-and-boiled-in-water-sweet-corn-is-edible-and-nutritious/) [Rex Stout](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rex-stout/) > [“There’s sugar beets and sweet corn and green peas. And those low buildings way over there? Turkey farms. Minnesota is the biggest producer of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christina-baker-kline/there-s-sugar-beets-and-sweet-corn-and-green-peas-and-those-low/) [Christina Baker Kline](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christina-baker-kline/) > [“Servers moved among the guests with trays of hors d'oeuvres and the signature cocktail, champagne with a honey infused liqueur and a delicate spiral…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-wiggs/servers-moved-among-the-guests-with-trays-of-hors-d-oeuvres-and-the/) [Susan Wiggs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-wiggs/) > [“Many Union soldiers had money, and since 45,000 prisoners moved through Andersonville in the span of about 14 months, there was actually a free…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-river-editors/many-union-soldiers-had-money-and-since-45-000-prisoners-moved/) [Charles River Editors](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-river-editors/) > [“Your special someone! In the vastness of her inner mind, In the confines of her selective memories, In the visions of her eyes refined,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/javid-ahmad-tak/your-special-someone-in-the-vastness-of-her-inner-mind-in-the/) [Javid Ahmad Tak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/javid-ahmad-tak/) > [Look, I made a commitment to corn 17 years ago. Sure, I'm a man. I like to go to a barbecue and see beans…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-lopez/look-i-made-a-commitment-to-corn-17-years-ago-sure-i-m-a-man-i-like/) [George Lopez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-lopez/) > [“the growing season is not so good. As the tomatoes and sweet corn hardly make it till the first frost. I guess they generally…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ora-jay-eash/the-growing-season-is-not-so-good-as-the-tomatoes-and-sweet-corn/) [Ora-Jay Eash](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ora-jay-eash/) > [And pray what more can a reasonable man desire, in peaceful times, in ordinary noons, than a sufficient number of ears of green sweet…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/and-pray-what-more-can-a-reasonable-man-desire-in-peaceful-times-in/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) ## More by Susan Power > [“Don’t you know you’re beautiful?” Fanny picked up one of my hands as casually as she would a teacup. “Look at this, look at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-power/don-t-you-know-you-re-beautiful-fanny-picked-up-one-of-my-hands-as/) [Susan Power](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-power/) > [“She had always been different, even when she tried not to be, unable to curb her curiosity which led her to read a great…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-power/she-had-always-been-different-even-when-she-tried-not-to-be-unable-to/) [Susan Power](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-power/) > [“When I thought of them together, I saw my sister perched behind Philbert on a bucking Brahma bull. She wasn’t grasping her boyfriend around…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-power/when-i-thought-of-them-together-i-saw-my-sister-perched-behind/) [Susan Power](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-power/) > [“Margaret peered at her reflecion, moving the compact in a circle so she could see her entire face. She though she looked transparent as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-power/margaret-peered-at-her-reflecion-moving-the-compact-in-a-circle-so/) [Susan Power](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-power/) > [“Lake Michigan had tempted her. It was a clear emerald green, and she could see to the bottom. The sand looked soft.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-power/lake-michigan-had-tempted-her-it-was-a-clear-emerald-green-and-she/) [Susan Power](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-power/) > [“Because I have willed it. And I am not a fairy tale.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-power/because-i-have-willed-it-and-i-am-not-a-fairy-tale/) [Susan Power](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-power/) > [“A vast mirror hung above his desk, its gilt frame a horror of twisted vines and sharp leaves, angry looking foliage. I thought of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-power/a-vast-mirror-hung-above-his-desk-its-gilt-frame-a-horror-of-twisted/) [Susan Power](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-power/) > [“I’m your friend now,” she told Harley as she massaged his neck and shoulders. “I have plenty of soul to spare. I’m rubbing it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-power/i-m-your-friend-now-she-told-harley-as-she-massaged-his-neck-and/) [Susan Power](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-power/) > [“We worked well together because I was quiet, fascinated by her stories of Wisconsin, which, as she told it, was not only the center…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-power/we-worked-well-together-because-i-was-quiet-fascinated-by-her-stories/) [Susan Power](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-power/) > [“You don’t let your feelings run around and jump into someone else’s hand.” Mercury made a fist. “You grab on to your own life…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-power/you-don-t-let-your-feelings-run-around-and-jump-into-someone-else-s/) [Susan Power](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-power/) > [“She took to praying to Wakan Tanka, the Great Spirit of her childhood, who had not been a jealous God, she thought, but had…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-power/she-took-to-praying-to-wakan-tanka-the-great-spirit-of-her-childhood/) [Susan Power](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-power/) [Explore all 12 Susan Power quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-power/) ## More Longing quotes > [At the centre of the human heart is the longing for an absolute good, a longing which is always there and is never appeased…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simone-weil/at-the-centre-of-the-human-heart-is-the-longing-for-an-absolute-good/) [Simone Weil](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simone-weil/) > [“Haunted by the longing to feel something real, deep and magical; I searched for a shared ecstasy... that's when you came along.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lebo-grand/haunted-by-the-longing-to-feel-something-real-deep-and-magical-i/) [Lebo Grand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lebo-grand/) > [Sometimes it has to do with other longings that are much more existential. Sometimes you go elsewhere not because you are not liking the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/esther-perel/sometimes-it-has-to-do-with-other-longings-that-are-much-more/) [Esther Perel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/esther-perel/) > [Could it be in longing we are most ourselves?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/li-young-lee/could-it-be-in-longing-we-are-most-ourselves/) [Li-Young Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/li-young-lee/) > [Tireless passion, fierce jealousy, longing to possess and crush-these alone were left of all his love for Rosalind; these remained to him as payment…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/f-scott-fitzgerald/tireless-passion-fierce-jealousy-longing-to-possess-and-crush-these/) [F. Scott Fitzgerald](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/f-scott-fitzgerald/) > [“She pretended not to notice the look of longing in his eyes. It didn’t mean anything.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-o-brien/she-pretended-not-to-notice-the-look-of-longing-in-his-eyes-it-didn-t/) [Kevin O'Brien](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-o-brien/) > [The artist's experience lies so unbelievably close to the sexual, to its pain and its pleasure, that the two phenomena are really just different…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rainer-maria-rilke/the-artist-s-experience-lies-so-unbelievably-close-to-the-sexual-to/) [Rainer Maria Rilke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rainer-maria-rilke/) > [“My only enemy is the miles of distance that's there between us, my favorite place is the road that leads me to you -…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jyoti-patel/my-only-enemy-is-the-miles-of-distance-that-s-there-between-us-my/) [Jyoti Patel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jyoti-patel/) > [The sense that in this universe we are treated as strangers, the longing to be acknowledged, to meet with some response, to bridge some…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-sense-that-in-this-universe-we-are-treated-as-strangers-the/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [By the time they were pulling into the parking lot of the A&P, the mood was fading, the moment gone. Amy could feel it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-strout/by-the-time-they-were-pulling-into-the-parking-lot-of-the-a-p-the/) [Elizabeth Strout](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-strout/) > [But I still has enough longing for that concept that I didn't want to dispel it completely. Meaning: I didn't want to tell Lily…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-levithan/but-i-still-has-enough-longing-for-that-concept-that-i-didn-t-want-to/) [David Levithan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-levithan/) > [Do the kind of things that come from the heart, When you do, you won't be dissatisfied, you won't be envious, you won't be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/do-the-kind-of-things-that-come-from-the-heart-when-you-do-you-won-t/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“And how do you really feel? Like I'll never recover. 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Each is touched by it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/juliet-marillier/the-greatest-tales-well-told-awaken-the-fears-and-longings-of-the/) [Juliet Marillier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/juliet-marillier/) [Browse all 2,553 Longing quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/longing/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“A permanent dull ache spread from my belly to my chest. I thought I could feel pinpricks of loneliness in the pads of my fingers, taste it in the back of my mouth. Clara Miller must have been lonely too, longing to be touched. One day as she sat before her metal tub filled to the rim with sweet corn, she reached behind her head and unpinned her silver hair. It tumbled down her back like creamy lace cloak. She hiked her skirts to her knees and I could see she had removed her stockings. Her legs were heavy and milk white, solid as columns. She hiked her skirts higher, until they bunched in her lap. 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