--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: When you care more if someone else lives…" description: "\"When you care more if someone else lives than you do about yourself- is that what [love is]?\" — Jodi Picoult" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b14/jodi-picoult-45_abnegation_when-you-care-more-if-someone-else-lives_2507852.jpg" --- # When you care more if someone else lives than you do about… ![“When you care more if someone else lives than you do about yourself- is that what [love is]?” quote by Jodi Picoult](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b14/jodi-picoult-45_abnegation_when-you-care-more-if-someone-else-lives_2507852.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b14/jodi-picoult-45_abnegation_when-you-care-more-if-someone-else-lives_2507852.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b14/jodi-picoult-45_abnegation_when-you-care-more-if-someone-else-lives_2507852.jpg) > “When you care more if someone else lives than you do about yourself- is that what \[love is\]?” [Jodi Picoult](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jodi-picoult/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Love is measured by the willingness to sacrifice one's own safety for another's life. **In simple terms:** Love means caring more about another's life than your own. Key Takeaway Prioritize others' well‑being. Themes love self‑sacrifice empathy Mood compassionate reflective Type ethical philosophical When to use this quote - family caregiving - medical decisions - emergency rescue - volunteer work Key Concepts Altruism ethical dilemma human value Questions to Reflect On - What would you risk for someone you love? - How do you balance self‑care with caring for others? A Different Perspective Self‑neglect can be harmful if unchecked. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Abnegation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/abnegation/) [About yourself](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/about-yourself/) [Care](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/care/) [Care Lives](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/care-lives-1127248/) [First love](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/first-love/) [Lives](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lives/) [Lives Love](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lives-love-1127246/) [Love](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/love/) [Love Does](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/love-does/) [Love is](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/love-is/) ## Related quotes > [“Our values call upon us to care about the lives of people we will never meet.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barack-obama/our-values-call-upon-us-to-care-about-the-lives-of-people-we-will/) [Barack Obama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barack-obama/) > [Animals were both the lives I took care of and the lives who took care of me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lucy-grealy/animals-were-both-the-lives-i-took-care-of-and-the-lives-who-took/) [Lucy Grealy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lucy-grealy/) > [“A loving woman takes care of herself and lives her life to the fullest.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gift-gugu-mona/a-loving-woman-takes-care-of-herself-and-lives-her-life-to-the-fullest/) [Gift Gugu Mona](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gift-gugu-mona/) > [Not caring for their lives' is it? Why, what in the world is there that we should care for if it's not our lives,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcel-proust/not-caring-for-their-lives-is-it-why-what-in-the-world-is-there-that/) [Marcel Proust](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcel-proust/) > [Grief is so human, and it hits everyone at one point or another, at least, in their lives. If you love, you will grieve,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kay-redfield-jamison/grief-is-so-human-and-it-hits-everyone-at-one-point-or-another-at/) [Kay Redfield Jamison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kay-redfield-jamison/) > [...we make our lives by what we love.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-cage/we-make-our-lives-by-what-we-love/) [John Cage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-cage/) > [Before you can do anything else in the lives of others, you must show them love.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-c-maxwell/before-you-can-do-anything-else-in-the-lives-of-others-you-must-show/) [John C. Maxwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-c-maxwell/) > [The great thing about my two lives is I love them both. I'm very ambitious and nothing gets in the way of me practising…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rory-mcilroy/the-great-thing-about-my-two-lives-is-i-love-them-both-i-m-very/) [Rory McIlroy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rory-mcilroy/) > [“Love, in all its fragile forms, is the one powerful, enduring force that brings real meaning to our everyday lives...but the love I mean…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bradley-trevor-grieve/love-in-all-its-fragile-forms-is-the-one-powerful-enduring-force-that/) [Bradley Trevor Grieve](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bradley-trevor-grieve/) > [May this marriage fill your lives with love and happiness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/may-this-marriage-fill-your-lives-with-love-and-happiness/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Never trust people who don't have something in their lives that they love beyond all reason.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fredrik-backman/never-trust-people-who-don-t-have-something-in-their-lives-that-they/) [Fredrik Backman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fredrik-backman/) > [He that lives in love lives in God.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-penn/he-that-lives-in-love-lives-in-god/) [William Penn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-penn/) > [We can't live other people's lives for them. Even if we love them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kristin-hannah/we-can-t-live-other-people-s-lives-for-them-even-if-we-love-them/) [Kristin Hannah](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kristin-hannah/) > [May the coming years, fill your lives with love and happiness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/may-the-coming-years-fill-your-lives-with-love-and-happiness/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“In a world plagued with commonplace tragedies, only one thing exists that truly has the power to save lives, and that is love.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richelle-goodrich/in-a-world-plagued-with-commonplace-tragedies-only-one-thing-exists/) [Richelle Goodrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richelle-goodrich/) ## More by Jodi Picoult > [You get through it, you just never get over it](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jodi-picoult/you-get-through-it-you-just-never-get-over-it/) [Jodi Picoult](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jodi-picoult/) > [“Let me guess," Eric says, "You never meant for it to happen." "Hell, yes, I did. I've wanted her since you two started dating."…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jodi-picoult/let-me-guess-eric-says-you-never-meant-for-it-to-happen-hell-yes-i/) [Jodi Picoult](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jodi-picoult/) > [“It’s the difference between dancing along the eggshell crust of acquaintance and diving into the messy center of a relationship.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jodi-picoult/it-s-the-difference-between-dancing-along-the-eggshell-crust-of/) [Jodi Picoult](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jodi-picoult/) > [Because hate's just the flip side of love. Like heads and tails on a dime. If you don't know what it feels like to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jodi-picoult/because-hate-s-just-the-flip-side-of-love-like-heads-and-tails-on-a/) [Jodi Picoult](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jodi-picoult/) > [Some women are meant to change the world, while others are meant to hold it together. And then there are those of us who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jodi-picoult/some-women-are-meant-to-change-the-world-while-others-are-meant-to/) [Jodi Picoult](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jodi-picoult/) > [I love feeling loved. I don't love knowing that I will always come in second place. I love the fact that at least sometimes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jodi-picoult/i-love-feeling-loved-i-don-t-love-knowing-that-i-will-always-come-in/) [Jodi Picoult](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jodi-picoult/) > [“Music is the language of memory”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jodi-picoult/music-is-the-language-of-memory/) [Jodi Picoult](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jodi-picoult/) > [But there is a different between mending someone who's broken and finding someone who makes you complete.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jodi-picoult/but-there-is-a-different-between-mending-someone-who-s-broken-and/) [Jodi Picoult](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jodi-picoult/) > [“sometimes words are not big enough to contain all the feelings you are trying to pour into them. My”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jodi-picoult/sometimes-words-are-not-big-enough-to-contain-all-the-feelings-you/) [Jodi Picoult](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jodi-picoult/) > [“The age wasn't as important as the milestones.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jodi-picoult/the-age-wasn-t-as-important-as-the-milestones/) [Jodi Picoult](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jodi-picoult/) > [The night is falling down around us. Meteors rain like fireworks, quick rips in the seam of the dark... Every second, another streak of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jodi-picoult/the-night-is-falling-down-around-us-meteors-rain-like-fireworks-quick/) [Jodi Picoult](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jodi-picoult/) > [“When she had packed all the artifacts that made up their personal history into liquor store boxes, the house became strictly a feminine place.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jodi-picoult/when-she-had-packed-all-the-artifacts-that-made-up-their-personal/) [Jodi Picoult](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jodi-picoult/) > [“Maybe who we are isn't so much about what we do, but rather what we're capable of when we least expect it.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jodi-picoult/maybe-who-we-are-isn-t-so-much-about-what-we-do-but-rather-what-we-re/) [Jodi Picoult](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jodi-picoult/) > [“Here's what I hadn't realized : the mother you haven't seen for almost 36 years isn't your mother. She is a stranger. Sharing DNA…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jodi-picoult/here-s-what-i-hadn-t-realized-the-mother-you-haven-t-seen-for-almost/) [Jodi Picoult](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jodi-picoult/) > [My brother believed in all sorts of mythical creatures: pixies, dragons, werewolves, honest men.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jodi-picoult/my-brother-believed-in-all-sorts-of-mythical-creatures-pixies-dragons/) [Jodi Picoult](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jodi-picoult/) [Explore all 2,062 Jodi Picoult quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jodi-picoult/) ## More Abnegation quotes > [And he’s right to say that every faction loses something when it gains a virtue: the Dauntless, brave but cruel; the Erudite, intelligent but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/veronica-roth/and-he-s-right-to-say-that-every-faction-loses-something-when-it/) [Veronica Roth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/veronica-roth/) > [We all have to lead our own life, and we only have the one life, and the only people who can live life not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/javier-mar-as/we-all-have-to-lead-our-own-life-and-we-only-have-the-one-life-and/) [Javier Marías](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/javier-mar-as/) > [There is in even the most selfish passion a large element of self-abnegation. It is startling to realize that what we call extreme self-seeking…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-hoffer/there-is-in-even-the-most-selfish-passion-a-large-element-of-self/) [Eric Hoffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-hoffer/) > [All women are brought up from the very earliest years in the belief that their ideal of character is the very opposite to that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-stuart-mill/all-women-are-brought-up-from-the-very-earliest-years-in-the-belief/) [John Stuart Mill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-stuart-mill/) > [“Dear David, I’m sorry, but it’s not going to happen the way we planned it. I can’t do it. I know you’re just going…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/veronica-roth/dear-david-i-m-sorry-but-it-s-not-going-to-happen-the-way-we-planned/) [Veronica Roth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/veronica-roth/) > [“I guess I grew suspicious of both. Power and knowledge," I say. "To the Abnegation, power should only be given to people who don't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/veronica-roth/i-guess-i-grew-suspicious-of-both-power-and-knowledge-i-say-to-the/) [Veronica Roth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/veronica-roth/) > [“Your Abnegation is showing,”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/veronica-roth/your-abnegation-is-showing/) [Veronica Roth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/veronica-roth/) > [“I also remember that my father was one of the people who voted to get the Dauntless out of the factionless sector of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/veronica-roth/i-also-remember-that-my-father-was-one-of-the-people-who-voted-to-get/) [Veronica Roth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/veronica-roth/) > [I will be my undoing If I become my obsession.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/veronica-roth/i-will-be-my-undoing-if-i-become-my-obsession/) [Veronica Roth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/veronica-roth/) > [She tips her chin up and looks at me with that Abnegation stubbornness I know so well. She may have left them, but they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/veronica-roth/she-tips-her-chin-up-and-looks-at-me-with-that-abnegation/) [Veronica Roth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/veronica-roth/) > [Power is violence, its promise, its deed. Power cares nothing for reason, nothing for justice, nothing for compassion. It is, in fact, the singular…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-erikson/power-is-violence-its-promise-its-deed-power-cares-nothing-for-reason/) [Steven Erikson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-erikson/) > [Yeah, well," I say, "I left Abnegation because I wasn't selfless enough, no matter how hard I tried to be." "That's not entirely true."…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/veronica-roth/yeah-well-i-say-i-left-abnegation-because-i-wasn-t-selfless-enough-no/) [Veronica Roth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/veronica-roth/) > [I knew by the way he looked at her that he held her in a higher regard than he held even himself. No selfishness…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/veronica-roth/i-knew-by-the-way-he-looked-at-her-that-he-held-her-in-a-higher/) [Veronica Roth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/veronica-roth/) > [“no wonder you left." Yeah," i say, rolling my eyes. " It was just because of the food.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/veronica-roth/no-wonder-you-left-yeah-i-say-rolling-my-eyes-it-was-just-because-of/) [Veronica Roth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/veronica-roth/) > [Few people who are born into Abnegation choose to leave it. When they do, we remember.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/veronica-roth/few-people-who-are-born-into-abnegation-choose-to-leave-it-when-they/) [Veronica Roth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/veronica-roth/) [Browse all 82 Abnegation quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/abnegation/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "When you care more if someone else lives than you do about yourself- is that what [love is]?", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Jodi Picoult" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jodi-picoult/when-you-care-more-if-someone-else-lives-than-you-do-about-yourself/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Abnegation" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jodi-picoult/when-you-care-more-if-someone-else-lives-than-you-do-about-yourself/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b14/jodi-picoult-45_abnegation_when-you-care-more-if-someone-else-lives_2507852.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b14/jodi-picoult-45_abnegation_when-you-care-more-if-someone-else-lives_2507852.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b14/jodi-picoult-45_abnegation_when-you-care-more-if-someone-else-lives_2507852.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“When you care more if someone else lives than you do about yourself- is that what [love is]?” — Jodi Picoult", "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": "Jodi Picoult", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jodi-picoult/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "When you care more if someone...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jodi-picoult/when-you-care-more-if-someone-else-lives-than-you-do-about-yourself/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jodi-picoult/when-you-care-more-if-someone-else-lives-than-you-do-about-yourself/#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 } } ] } ```