--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Sissy had two great failings. She was a…" description: "\"“Sissy had two great failings. She was a great lover and a great mother. She had so much of tenderness in her, so much of wanting to give of herself to..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ac2/betty-smith-1012_agape_sissy-had-two-great-failings-she-was-a-g_451993.jpg" --- # Sissy had two great failings. She was a great lover and a… ![“Sissy had two great failings. She was a great lover and a great mother. She had so much of tenderness in her, so much of wanting to give of herself to whoever needed what she had, whether it was her money, her time, the clothes off her back, her pity, her understanding, her friendship or her…” quote by Betty Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ac2/betty-smith-1012_agape_sissy-had-two-great-failings-she-was-a-g_451993.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ac2/betty-smith-1012_agape_sissy-had-two-great-failings-she-was-a-g_451993.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ac2/betty-smith-1012_agape_sissy-had-two-great-failings-she-was-a-g_451993.jpg) > ““Sissy had two great failings. She was a great lover and a great mother. She had so much of tenderness in her, so much of wanting to give of herself to whoever needed what she had, whether it was her money, her time, the clothes off her back, her pity, her understanding, her friendship or her companionship and love. She was mother to everything that came her way. She loved men, yes. She loved women too, and old people, and especially children. How she loved children! She loved the down-and-outers. She wanted to make everybody happy. She had tried to seduce the good priest who heard her infrequent confessions because she felt sorry for him. She thought he was missing the greatest joy on earth by being committed to a life of celibacy.”” [Betty Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/betty-smith/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The passage depicts a woman whose generosity and love for all, especially children, lead her to neglect personal boundaries and become overly self-sacrificial. **In simple terms:** She gives everything to others, losing herself. Key Takeaway Balance generosity with self‑care. Themes family generosity self‑sacrifice love compassion Mood reflective empathetic Type literary character study When to use this quote - community service - family caregiving - volunteering - personal relationships - mental health Key Concepts altruism boundaries identity emotional labor Questions to Reflect On - When does helping become self‑harm? - How can one set healthy limits while caring? A Different Perspective Self‑sacrifice can lead to burnout and loss of self. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Agape](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/agape/) [Children](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/children/) [Failure](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/failure/) [Felt Sorry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/felt-sorry/) [Great mother](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/great-mother/) [Humor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/humor/) [Love](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/love/) [Love Mother](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/love-mother/) [Loved Women](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/loved-women-266742/) [Old people](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/old-people/) [Parenting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/parenting/) [Sissy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sissy/) [Sissy Great](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sissy-great-569775/) ## Related quotes > [“Sissy had two great failings. She was a great lover and a great mother. She had so much of tenderness in her, so much…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/betty-smith/sissy-had-two-great-failings-she-was-a-great-lover-and-a-great-mother-2/) [Betty Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/betty-smith/) > [Those were the Rommely women: Mary, the mother, Evy, Sissy, and Katie, her daughters, and Francie, who would grow up to be a Rommely…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/betty-smith/those-were-the-rommely-women-mary-the-mother-evy-sissy-and-katie-her/) [Betty Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/betty-smith/) > [“She did not hate Miss Garnder anymore. She didn’t like her, but she felt sorry for her. Miss Garnder had nothing in all the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/betty-smith/she-did-not-hate-miss-garnder-anymore-she-didn-t-like-her-but-she/) [Betty Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/betty-smith/) > [I have loved eight women in my life. I remember every woman's face.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-ant/i-have-loved-eight-women-in-my-life-i-remember-every-woman-s-face/) [Adam Ant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-ant/) > [I have loved women even to madness, but I have always loved liberty better.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/giacomo-casanova/i-have-loved-women-even-to-madness-but-i-have-always-loved-liberty/) [Giacomo Casanova](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/giacomo-casanova/) > [I loved women who weren't afraid to get ugly in their comedy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/natasha-rothwell/i-loved-women-who-weren-t-afraid-to-get-ugly-in-their-comedy/) [Natasha Rothwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/natasha-rothwell/) > [“I've loved many women...I'm not going to lie to you, but it never works...vanity always gets in the way.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cassandra-giovanni/i-ve-loved-many-women-i-m-not-going-to-lie-to-you-but-it-never-works/) [Cassandra Giovanni](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cassandra-giovanni/) > [I'm into women. I've always loved women.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-gest/i-m-into-women-i-ve-always-loved-women/) [David Gest](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-gest/) > [“Her eyes widened and her mouth formed an anguished O. He had to admit, there was real pleasure in seeing her pay the price…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/val-mcdermid/her-eyes-widened-and-her-mouth-formed-an-anguished-o-he-had-to-admit/) [Val McDermid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/val-mcdermid/) > [I've lived with women, loved women, lost women. They've loved me, lost me, whatever.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-adly-guirgis/i-ve-lived-with-women-loved-women-lost-women-they-ve-loved-me-lost-me/) [Stephen Adly Guirgis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-adly-guirgis/) > [I was always aware that Jack loved women not only for their bodies but for the stories that came into being as they interacted…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joyce-johnson/i-was-always-aware-that-jack-loved-women-not-only-for-their-bodies/) [Joyce Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joyce-johnson/) > [“I’d loved women who were old and who were young; those extra kilos and large rumps, and others so thin there was barely even…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roman-payne/i-d-loved-women-who-were-old-and-who-were-young-those-extra-kilos-and/) [Roman Payne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roman-payne/) > [“I pedaled as fast as I could... as if I were escaping from longing, from innocence, from her. Time has passed, and I have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/renato-amoroso/i-pedaled-as-fast-as-i-could-as-if-i-were-escaping-from-longing-from/) [Renato Amoroso](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/renato-amoroso/) > [“The smell of a woman is her most important quality. I’d loved women who were old and who were young; those with extra kilos…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roman-payne/the-smell-of-a-woman-is-her-most-important-quality-i-d-loved-women/) [Roman Payne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roman-payne/) > [“First I loved women, then animals, and now I love stones. They're just as amusing as women and animals and they're much less trecherous.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-hugo/first-i-loved-women-then-animals-and-now-i-love-stones-they-re-just/) [Victor Hugo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victor-hugo/) ## More by Betty Smith > [“Yes, when I get big and have my own home, no plush chairs and lace curtains for me. And no rubber plants. I'll have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/betty-smith/yes-when-i-get-big-and-have-my-own-home-no-plush-chairs-and-lace/) [Betty Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/betty-smith/) > [“Several times that day, the name or thought of Papa had come up. And each time, Francie had felt a flash of tenderness instead…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/betty-smith/several-times-that-day-the-name-or-thought-of-papa-had-come-up-and/) [Betty Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/betty-smith/) > [As long as one can suffer, one is living…live and suffer until life is gone.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/betty-smith/as-long-as-one-can-suffer-one-is-living-live-and-suffer-until-life-is/) [Betty Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/betty-smith/) > [“Sissy told them they were way behind the times; that midwives were things of the past. 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But oh, how wonderful, he thought, if everything…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/betty-smith/pipe-dreams-he-thought-to-himself-even-while-he-was-telling-her-about/) [Betty Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/betty-smith/) > [“Who wants to die? Everything struggles to live. Look at that tree growing up there out of that grating. It gets no sun, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/betty-smith/who-wants-to-die-everything-struggles-to-live-look-at-that-tree/) [Betty Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/betty-smith/) > [It takes a lot of doing to die.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/betty-smith/it-takes-a-lot-of-doing-to-die/) [Betty Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/betty-smith/) > [“She sat in the sunshine watching the life on the street and guarding within herself, her own mystery of life.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/betty-smith/she-sat-in-the-sunshine-watching-the-life-on-the-street-and-guarding/) [Betty Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/betty-smith/) > [...the reading, the observing, the living from day to day. 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Kids grow up quick in this neighborhood.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/betty-smith/one-day-they-re-babies-in-buggies-and-the-next-day-they-re-in-here/) [Betty Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/betty-smith/) > [“If she never had any lovers, she kicks herself around when the change comes, thinking of all the fun she could have had, didn’t…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/betty-smith/if-she-never-had-any-lovers-she-kicks-herself-around-when-the-change/) [Betty Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/betty-smith/) [Explore all 306 Betty Smith quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/betty-smith/) ## More Agape quotes > [There's a term, agape, you hear used a lot with charismatic religious groups, that it's this more pure love of caring, of sharing of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phil-jackson/there-s-a-term-agape-you-hear-used-a-lot-with-charismatic-religious/) [Phil Jackson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phil-jackson/) > [Agape means recognition of the fact that all life is interrelated. All humanity is involved in a single process, and all men are brothers.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-luther-king-jr/agape-means-recognition-of-the-fact-that-all-life-is-interrelated-all/) [Martin Luther King, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-luther-king-jr/) > [There must be a stronger foundation than mere friendship or sexual attraction. Unconditional love, agape love, will not be swayed by time or circumstances.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-kendrick/there-must-be-a-stronger-foundation-than-mere-friendship-or-sexual/) [Stephen Kendrick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-kendrick/) > [“Agape love is strengthened by the person who expresses it - not by the person who receives it. In fact, the person who receives…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-apollo/agape-love-is-strengthened-by-the-person-who-expresses-it-not-by-the/) [Brian Apollo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-apollo/) > [“Every action is a losing, a letting go, a passing away from oneself of some bit of one’s own reality into the existence of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-c-mcgill/every-action-is-a-losing-a-letting-go-a-passing-away-from-oneself-of/) [Arthur C. McGill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-c-mcgill/) > [“No doubt, God has placed you in the position to love the unlovely, whether or not you've been obedient to that command. In fact,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/beth-moore/no-doubt-god-has-placed-you-in-the-position-to-love-the-unlovely/) [Beth Moore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/beth-moore/) > [What I am trying to say is that it is not without any value. The value of copies is that they can direct us…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abbas-kiarostami/what-i-am-trying-to-say-is-that-it-is-not-without-any-value-the-value/) [Abbas Kiarostami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abbas-kiarostami/) > [My teenage children watched Senator Clinton on the Today Show, mouths agape. They attended our local caucus with me and saw hundreds of our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shoshana-zuboff/my-teenage-children-watched-senator-clinton-on-the-today-show-mouths/) [Shoshana Zuboff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shoshana-zuboff/) > [“ Agape is disinterested love. It is a love in which the individual seeks not his own good, but the good of his neighbor…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-luther-king-jr-2/agape-is-disinterested-love-it-is-a-love-in-which-the-individual/) [Martin Luther King Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-luther-king-jr-2/) > [“To agape,” we all echoed, raising our wineglasses and drinking to higher love.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-konigsberg/to-agape-we-all-echoed-raising-our-wineglasses-and-drinking-to-higher/) [Bill Konigsberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-konigsberg/) > [Agape is disinterested love. . . . Agape does not begin by discriminating between worthy and unworthy people, or any qualities people possess. It…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-luther-king-jr/agape-is-disinterested-love-agape-does-not-begin-by-discriminating/) [Martin Luther King, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-luther-king-jr/) > [“HE remembered looking "agape" in his encyclopedia volume after he read Dr. King's speech in the DEFENDER. The newspaper ran the address in full…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colson-whitehead/he-remembered-looking-agape-in-his-encyclopedia-volume-after-he-read/) [Colson Whitehead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colson-whitehead/) > [We must never stop dreaming. Dreams provide nourishment for the soul, just as a meal does for the body. Many times in our lives…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/we-must-never-stop-dreaming-dreams-provide-nourishment-for-the-soul/) [Paulo Coelho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-coelho/) > [“Experience and Demonstrate the Agape Love, is far more than Gold - Go for it”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-asumadu-sarkodie/experience-and-demonstrate-the-agape-love-is-far-more-than-gold-go/) [Samuel Asumadu-Sarkodie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-asumadu-sarkodie/) > [“I am blessed and being blessed is something more than just having something. It is a state of mind in which the good of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-mccall-smith/i-am-blessed-and-being-blessed-is-something-more-than-just-having/) [Alexander McCall Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-mccall-smith/) [Browse all 71 Agape quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/agape/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Sissy had two great failings. She was a great lover and a great mother. She had so much of tenderness in her, so much of wanting to give of herself to whoever needed what she had, whether it was her money, her time, the clothes off her back, her pity, her understanding, her friendship or her companionship and love. She was mother to everything that came her way. She loved men, yes. She loved women too, and old people, and especially children. How she loved children! She loved the down-and-outers. She wanted to make everybody happy. 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