--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Small things such as this have saved me…" description: "\"Small things such as this have saved me: how much I love my mother—even after all these years. How powerfully I carry her within me. My grief is tremen..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4db/cheryl-strayed-605_bigger_small-things-such-as-this-have-saved-me_1657468.jpg" --- # Small things such as this have saved me: how much I love… ![“Small things such as this have saved me: how much I love my mother—even after all these years. How powerfully I carry her within me. My grief is tremendous but my love is bigger. So is yours. You are not grieving your son’s death because his death was ugly and unfair. You’re grieving it because…” quote by Cheryl Strayed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4db/cheryl-strayed-605_bigger_small-things-such-as-this-have-saved-me_1657468.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4db/cheryl-strayed-605_bigger_small-things-such-as-this-have-saved-me_1657468.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4db/cheryl-strayed-605_bigger_small-things-such-as-this-have-saved-me_1657468.jpg) > “Small things such as this have saved me: how much I love my mother—even after all these years. How powerfully I carry her within me. My grief is tremendous but my love is bigger. So is yours. You are not grieving your son’s death because his death was ugly and unfair. You’re grieving it because you loved him truly. The beauty in that is greater than the bitterness of his death.” [Cheryl Strayed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cheryl-strayed/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Grief and love coexist; love’s strength can outweigh sorrow, honoring the departed’s memory. **In simple terms:** Love can be larger than grief. Key Takeaway Embrace love to heal grief. Themes grief love memory Mood somber hopeful Type comforting inspirational When to use this quote - mourning - celebrating life - support groups - personal healing Key Concepts emotional resilience family bonds Questions to Reflect On - How can you nurture love while grieving? - What practices help transform grief into gratitude? A Different Perspective Grief may persist despite love’s power. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Bigger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bigger/) [Bigger Grieving](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bigger-grieving-721801/) [Bitterness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bitterness/) [Death](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/death/) [Grief](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/grief/) [Grieving](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/grieving/) [Grieving Son](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/grieving-son-721800/) [I love my mother](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/i-love-my-mother/) [Love](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/love/) [Love is](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/love-is/) [Mother](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mother/) [Small things](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/small-things/) [Son](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/son/) [Ugly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ugly/) [Unfair](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/unfair/) [Unfair Grieving](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/unfair-grieving-721802/) [Years](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/years/) [Your son](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/your-son/) ## Related quotes > [“Grief is tremendous, but love is bigger. You are grieving because you loved truly. The beauty in that is greater than the bitterness of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cheryl-strayed/grief-is-tremendous-but-love-is-bigger-you-are-grieving-because-you/) [Cheryl Strayed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cheryl-strayed/) > [“A grieving son was given the opportunity to write parting words on a card at his mother's funeral. He quoted the verse, "And morning…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/megan-mckenna/a-grieving-son-was-given-the-opportunity-to-write-parting-words-on-a/) [Megan McKenna](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/megan-mckenna/) > [When you meet a man in the doorway of a Mexican restaurant who later kisses you while explaining that this kiss doesn’t “mean anything”…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cheryl-strayed/when-you-meet-a-man-in-the-doorway-of-a-mexican-restaurant-who-later/) [Cheryl Strayed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cheryl-strayed/) > [I love my mother, but there has been, ever since my boyhood, a sort of coldness of intercourse between us, such as is apt…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nathaniel-hawthorne/i-love-my-mother-but-there-has-been-ever-since-my-boyhood-a-sort-of/) [Nathaniel Hawthorne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nathaniel-hawthorne/) > [This heart, my own dear mother, bends, With love's true instinct, back to thee!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-moore/this-heart-my-own-dear-mother-bends-with-love-s-true-instinct-back-to/) [Thomas Moore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-moore/) > [I love my mother dearly, but it wouldn't be suitable for me to live with her all the time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/keith-emerson/i-love-my-mother-dearly-but-it-wouldn-t-be-suitable-for-me-to-live/) [Keith Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/keith-emerson/) > [Even though I love my mother, I didn't want to make an idealized portrait of her. I'm fascinated more by her defects - they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pedro-almodovar/even-though-i-love-my-mother-i-didn-t-want-to-make-an-idealized/) [Pedro Almodovar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pedro-almodovar/) > [A mother's love for her child is like nothing else in the world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/agatha-christie/a-mother-s-love-for-her-child-is-like-nothing-else-in-the-world/) [Agatha Christie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/agatha-christie/) > [I love my mother. My mother made sure, her stubbornness - she made sure we was going to eat. She made sure we had…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tracy-morgan/i-love-my-mother-my-mother-made-sure-her-stubbornness-she-made-sure/) [Tracy Morgan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tracy-morgan/) > [I love my mother-in-law and I think I'm a really good one, too.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/reba-mcentire/i-love-my-mother-in-law-and-i-think-i-m-a-really-good-one-too/) [Reba McEntire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/reba-mcentire/) > [If my mother put on a helmet and shoulder pads and a uniform that wasn't the same as the one I was wearing, I'd…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bo-jackson/if-my-mother-put-on-a-helmet-and-shoulder-pads-and-a-uniform-that/) [Bo Jackson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bo-jackson/) > [I love my mother. She's my first love. She has been through a lot and is a sole survivor.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-love-my-mother-she-s-my-first-love-she-has-been-through-a-lot-and/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I love my mother for all the times she said absolutely nothing… Thinking back on it all, it must have been the most difficult…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erma-bombeck/i-love-my-mother-for-all-the-times-she-said-absolutely-nothing/) [Erma Bombeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erma-bombeck/) > [ I cannot forget my mother. \[S\]he is my bridge. When I needed to get across, she steadied herself long enough for me to run… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/renita-j-weems/i-cannot-forget-my-mother-s-he-is-my-bridge-when-i-needed-to-get/) [Renita J. Weems](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/renita-j-weems/) > [I love my mother, not as a prisoner of atherosclerosis, but as a person; and I must love her enough to accept her as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-love-my-mother-not-as-a-prisoner-of-atherosclerosis-but-as-a-person/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) ## More by Cheryl Strayed > [“She understands that attention is the first and final act of love, and that the ultimate dwindling resource in the human arrangement isn’t cheap…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cheryl-strayed/she-understands-that-attention-is-the-first-and-final-act-of-love-and/) [Cheryl Strayed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cheryl-strayed/) > [“The most terrible and beautiful and interesting things happen in life. For some of you, those things have already happened. Whatever happens to you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cheryl-strayed/the-most-terrible-and-beautiful-and-interesting-things-happen-in-life/) [Cheryl Strayed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cheryl-strayed/) > [Of course you want someone special to love you. A majority of the people who write to me inquire about how they can get…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cheryl-strayed/of-course-you-want-someone-special-to-love-you-a-majority-of-the/) [Cheryl Strayed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cheryl-strayed/) > [It's still true that literary works by women, gays, and writers of color are often framed as specific, rather than universal, small rather than…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cheryl-strayed/it-s-still-true-that-literary-works-by-women-gays-and-writers-of/) [Cheryl Strayed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cheryl-strayed/) > [My whole life sort of ended when my mom died.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cheryl-strayed/my-whole-life-sort-of-ended-when-my-mom-died/) [Cheryl Strayed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cheryl-strayed/) > [“And you have to do it no matter what is true. No matter what is hard.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cheryl-strayed/and-you-have-to-do-it-no-matter-what-is-true-no-matter-what-is-hard/) [Cheryl Strayed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cheryl-strayed/) > [“Don’t listen to those people who suggest you should be “over” your daughter’s death by now. The people who squawk the loudest about such…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cheryl-strayed/don-t-listen-to-those-people-who-suggest-you-should-be-over-your/) [Cheryl Strayed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cheryl-strayed/) > [“. . . there was the actual doing it, quickly followed by the grim realization of what it meant to do it, followed by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cheryl-strayed/there-was-the-actual-doing-it-quickly-followed-by-the-grim/) [Cheryl Strayed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cheryl-strayed/) > [“The sky didn't wonder where it was.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cheryl-strayed/the-sky-didn-t-wonder-where-it-was/) [Cheryl Strayed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cheryl-strayed/) > [He was the most ordinary man in all the world, and yet in her memory he'd become luminous, like the prince in a fairy…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cheryl-strayed/he-was-the-most-ordinary-man-in-all-the-world-and-yet-in-her-memory/) [Cheryl Strayed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cheryl-strayed/) > [Love is our essential nutrient. Without it, life has little meaning. It's the best thing we have to give and the most valuable thing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cheryl-strayed/love-is-our-essential-nutrient-without-it-life-has-little-meaning-it/) [Cheryl Strayed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cheryl-strayed/) > [“I never believed the boys were angry. I believed they were hurt and anger was the safest manifestation of their sorrow. It was the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cheryl-strayed/i-never-believed-the-boys-were-angry-i-believed-they-were-hurt-and/) [Cheryl Strayed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cheryl-strayed/) > [“It’s wrong that this is required of you. It’s wrong that your son died. It will always be wrong.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cheryl-strayed/it-s-wrong-that-this-is-required-of-you-it-s-wrong-that-your-son-died/) [Cheryl Strayed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cheryl-strayed/) > [“Your ultimatum is simple. It’s fair. And it’s stating your own intentions, not what you hope theirs will be.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cheryl-strayed/your-ultimatum-is-simple-it-s-fair-and-it-s-stating-your-own/) [Cheryl Strayed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cheryl-strayed/) > [“We aren't poor," my mother said, again and again. "Because we're rich in love.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cheryl-strayed/we-aren-t-poor-my-mother-said-again-and-again-because-we-re-rich-in/) [Cheryl Strayed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cheryl-strayed/) [Explore all 450 Cheryl Strayed quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cheryl-strayed/) ## More Bigger quotes > [The bigger the canvas, the better I do. I'm not so good at understated, kitchen-sink kinds of parts.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-reeve/the-bigger-the-canvas-the-better-i-do-i-m-not-so-good-at-understated/) [Christopher Reeve](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-reeve/) > [I've seen guys come along with more ability - they've been faster or bigger or stronger - but they never worked hard to develop…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-largent/i-ve-seen-guys-come-along-with-more-ability-they-ve-been-faster-or/) [Steve Largent](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-largent/) > [I have always been a big meta guy because I think the way journalism is practiced in Washington, and the way everyone sort of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-leibovich/i-have-always-been-a-big-meta-guy-because-i-think-the-way-journalism/) [Mark Leibovich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-leibovich/) > [In China, people are moving from bigger cars to small hatches, and interestingly, the Indian market is graduating to bigger cars and sedans. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/winfried-vahland/in-china-people-are-moving-from-bigger-cars-to-small-hatches-and/) [Winfried Vahland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/winfried-vahland/) > [Can you imagine any better example of divine creative accomplishment that the consummate flying machine that is a bird? The skeleton, very flexible and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/guy-murchie/can-you-imagine-any-better-example-of-divine-creative-accomplishment/) [Guy Murchie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/guy-murchie/) > [I just think structure can make a book feel so much bigger. It's the architecture. You could use flimsy materials if you wanted to,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jami-attenberg/i-just-think-structure-can-make-a-book-feel-so-much-bigger-it-s-the/) [Jami Attenberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jami-attenberg/) > [I've always thought that the most extraordinary special effect you could do is to buy a child at the moment of its birth, sit…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clive-barker/i-ve-always-thought-that-the-most-extraordinary-special-effect-you/) [Clive Barker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clive-barker/) > [Max—you have a bigger mission than finding the flock's parents. Focus on helping the whole world, not just your friends. I held my wings…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-patterson/max-you-have-a-bigger-mission-than-finding-the-flock-s-parents-focus/) [James Patterson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-patterson/) > [Sometimes people can write really great scenes and even a great episode, but they can't see the bigger picture.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-night-shyamalan/sometimes-people-can-write-really-great-scenes-and-even-a-great/) [M. Night Shyamalan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/m-night-shyamalan/) > [Never be too busy for the people you love. Never allow pursuits or possessions to become bigger priorities than your relationships. Love is what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dave-willis/never-be-too-busy-for-the-people-you-love-never-allow-pursuits-or/) [Dave Willis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dave-willis/) > [If you consider yourself a part of the culture, then finances can't allow you to be bigger than the actual art form.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/curtis-jackson/if-you-consider-yourself-a-part-of-the-culture-then-finances-can-t/) [Curtis Jackson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/curtis-jackson/) > [If we get better our customers will demand we get bigger.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/s-truett-cathy/if-we-get-better-our-customers-will-demand-we-get-bigger/) [S. Truett Cathy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/s-truett-cathy/) > [ Their \[the U.S.’s\] defense budget in absolute figures is almost 25 times bigger than Russia’s. This is what in defense is referred to as… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vladimir-putin/their-the-u-s-s-defense-budget-in-absolute-figures-is-almost-25-times/) [Vladimir Putin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vladimir-putin/) > [I think everyone has been annoyed at school or in their life, that's a type of bullying. So, you can take those feelings and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kodi-smit-mcphee/i-think-everyone-has-been-annoyed-at-school-or-in-their-life-that-s-a/) [Kodi Smit-McPhee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kodi-smit-mcphee/) > [Athletes at all ages are bigger and stronger than ever before. And they are being encouraged - sometimes even incentivized, as we recently learned…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/naveen-jain/athletes-at-all-ages-are-bigger-and-stronger-than-ever-before-and/) [Naveen Jain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/naveen-jain/) [Browse all 3,614 Bigger quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bigger/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Small things such as this have saved me: how much I love my mother—even after all these years. How powerfully I carry her within me. My grief is tremendous but my love is bigger. So is yours. You are not grieving your son’s death because his death was ugly and unfair. You’re grieving it because you loved him truly. The beauty in that is greater than the bitterness of his death.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Cheryl Strayed" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cheryl-strayed/small-things-such-as-this-have-saved-me-how-much-i-love-my-mother/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Bigger" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cheryl-strayed/small-things-such-as-this-have-saved-me-how-much-i-love-my-mother/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4db/cheryl-strayed-605_bigger_small-things-such-as-this-have-saved-me_1657468.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4db/cheryl-strayed-605_bigger_small-things-such-as-this-have-saved-me_1657468.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4db/cheryl-strayed-605_bigger_small-things-such-as-this-have-saved-me_1657468.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Small things such as this have saved me: how much I love my mother—even after all these years. How…” — Cheryl Strayed", "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": "Cheryl Strayed", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cheryl-strayed/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Small things such as this have...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cheryl-strayed/small-things-such-as-this-have-saved-me-how-much-i-love-my-mother/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cheryl-strayed/small-things-such-as-this-have-saved-me-how-much-i-love-my-mother/#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 } } ] } ```