--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: At length, when I considered it, I…" description: "\"At length, when I considered it, I realized that the best of my actions were small things. Picking flowers and cooking food for my mother when she had ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a43/sara-sheridan-1032_action_at-length-when-i-considered-it-i-realize_2473734.png" --- # At length, when I considered it, I realized that the best… ![“At length, when I considered it, I realized that the best of my actions were small things. Picking flowers and cooking food for my mother when she had been unwell, spending an afternoon with the children, sending money to my sister or kissing Henry's tiny head as he slept in the nursery before I…” quote by Sara Sheridan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a43/sara-sheridan-1032_action_at-length-when-i-considered-it-i-realize_2473734.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a43/sara-sheridan-1032_action_at-length-when-i-considered-it-i-realize_2473734.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a43/sara-sheridan-1032_action_at-length-when-i-considered-it-i-realize_2473734.png) > “At length, when I considered it, I realized that the best of my actions were small things. Picking flowers and cooking food for my mother when she had been unwell, spending an afternoon with the children, sending money to my sister or kissing Henry's tiny head as he slept in the nursery before I left. I thought of every detail and afterwards I felt better. Hellfire and brimstone have never appealed to me and I admit I become easily confused thinking of right and wrong. But I do understand kindness.” [Sara Sheridan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sara-sheridan/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The narrator reflects that small acts of kindness—caring for loved ones, sharing time, and gentle affection—bring personal peace more than grand moral judgments. **In simple terms:** Small kindnesses bring inner peace. Key Takeaway Value everyday kindness. Themes kindness family reflection morality Mood warm introspective Type personal ethical When to use this quote - caring for sick relatives - spending time with children - financial support to family - gentle affection Key Concepts ethical humility personal fulfillment caregiving Questions to Reflect On - What small act could you do today for someone? - How do you balance personal kindness with broader moral concerns? A Different Perspective May overlook larger systemic issues that also require attention. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Action](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/action/) [Children](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/children/) [Cooking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cooking/) [Flower](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/flower/) [Kindness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/kindness/) [Kissing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/kissing/) [Money](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/money/) [Mother](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mother/) [Nurse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nurse/) [Nursery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nursery/) [Right and wrong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/right-and-wrong/) [Small things](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/small-things/) [Thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thinking/) ## Related quotes > [In my whole life, when I've watched TV and movies, I've almost always felt, 'I could do that better,' and I thought everyone felt…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greg-poehler/in-my-whole-life-when-i-ve-watched-tv-and-movies-i-ve-almost-always/) [Greg Poehler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/greg-poehler/) > [“You're a hope-killer. 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If they are not, you cannot fence.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/your-actions-are-not-small-your-actions-must-be-very-small-if-they/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Never underestimate the power of your actions.With one small gesture you can change a person's life.For better or for worse.God puts us all in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carlin-whisler/never-underestimate-the-power-of-your-actions-with-one-small-gesture/) [Carlin Whisler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carlin-whisler/) > [In our day-to-day actions, it is often the small and simple things that will have a long-lasting impact (Alma 37:6-7). What we say, how…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/per-g-malm/in-our-day-to-day-actions-it-is-often-the-small-and-simple-things/) [Per G. Malm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/per-g-malm/) > [Kind words and actions can seem so small, but their effects are truly endless.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/kind-words-and-actions-can-seem-so-small-but-their-effects-are-truly/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“One of the graces of this world is that there is always some opportunity to show through our actions-be they ever so small or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katherine-marsh/one-of-the-graces-of-this-world-is-that-there-is-always-some/) [Katherine Marsh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katherine-marsh/) > [“I went into the room and sat next to Linus on the bed. I put my hand on his shoulder. I was always surprised…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/heather-o-neill/i-went-into-the-room-and-sat-next-to-linus-on-the-bed-i-put-my-hand/) [Heather O'Neill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/heather-o-neill/) > [Now Doon seemed to care for his new friends more than he did for her. Every time she thought about him she felt a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeanne-duprau/now-doon-seemed-to-care-for-his-new-friends-more-than-he-did-for-her/) [Jeanne DuPrau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeanne-duprau/) > [Lying in the bed that had once held two, Lisey thought alone never felt more lonely than when you woke up and discovered you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-king/lying-in-the-bed-that-had-once-held-two-lisey-thought-alone-never/) [Stephen King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-king/) ## More by Sara Sheridan > [Everyone assumes writers spend their time lounging around, writing and occasionally striking a pose whilst having a think.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sara-sheridan/everyone-assumes-writers-spend-their-time-lounging-around-writing-and/) [Sara Sheridan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sara-sheridan/) > [“Kissing her is like drinking salted water, he thinks. His thirst only increases.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sara-sheridan/kissing-her-is-like-drinking-salted-water-he-thinks-his-thirst-only/) [Sara Sheridan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sara-sheridan/) > [Those who have not been stung will hardly fear a bee the same as those who have.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sara-sheridan/those-who-have-not-been-stung-will-hardly-fear-a-bee-the-same-as/) [Sara Sheridan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sara-sheridan/) > [“We are in the middle of the biggest revolution in reading and writing since the advent of the Gutenberg press.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sara-sheridan/we-are-in-the-middle-of-the-biggest-revolution-in-reading-and-writing/) [Sara Sheridan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sara-sheridan/) > [The sky was a sparkling succession of black diamonds on black velvet made crystal clear by the blackout.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sara-sheridan/the-sky-was-a-sparkling-succession-of-black-diamonds-on-black-velvet/) [Sara Sheridan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sara-sheridan/) > [“The bonds between a family are strange indeed.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sara-sheridan/the-bonds-between-a-family-are-strange-indeed/) [Sara Sheridan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sara-sheridan/) > [History is full of blank spaces, but good stories, invariably, are not.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sara-sheridan/history-is-full-of-blank-spaces-but-good-stories-invariably-are-not/) [Sara Sheridan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sara-sheridan/) > [“The mass communications that could enable our politics for good have instead turned it into a bland conglomeration of stinted opinion cloaked in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sara-sheridan/the-mass-communications-that-could-enable-our-politics-for-good-have/) [Sara Sheridan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sara-sheridan/) > [I've found myself moved by letters and diaries in archives as well as trashy, summer blockbusters. It's possible to make a connection with any…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sara-sheridan/i-ve-found-myself-moved-by-letters-and-diaries-in-archives-as-well-as/) [Sara Sheridan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sara-sheridan/) > [Grabbing readers by the imagination is a writer's job.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sara-sheridan/grabbing-readers-by-the-imagination-is-a-writer-s-job/) [Sara Sheridan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sara-sheridan/) > [As an historical novelist - there are few jobs more retrospective. I dumped science at an early age.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sara-sheridan/as-an-historical-novelist-there-are-few-jobs-more-retrospective-i/) [Sara Sheridan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sara-sheridan/) > [“Crime writers, I've noticed, can be jumpy. They live in a world where there are murderers on the loose and they haven't been caught…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sara-sheridan/crime-writers-i-ve-noticed-can-be-jumpy-they-live-in-a-world-where/) [Sara Sheridan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sara-sheridan/) > [“The writing talent of Edinburgh is textured - we have poets, novelists, non-fiction writers, dramatists and more.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sara-sheridan/the-writing-talent-of-edinburgh-is-textured-we-have-poets-novelists/) [Sara Sheridan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sara-sheridan/) > [“Communism,” I observed, “is a pile of wank.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sara-sheridan/communism-i-observed-is-a-pile-of-wank/) [Sara Sheridan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sara-sheridan/) > [A word out of place or an interesting choice of vocabulary can spawn a whole character.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sara-sheridan/a-word-out-of-place-or-an-interesting-choice-of-vocabulary-can-spawn/) [Sara Sheridan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sara-sheridan/) [Explore all 305 Sara Sheridan quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sara-sheridan/) ## More Action quotes > [I always say there are two things to be successful. 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If you know these…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-bernbach/nothing-is-so-powerful-as-an-insight-into-human-nature-what/) [William Bernbach](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-bernbach/) > [Every thought I have imprisioned in expression I must free by my deeds](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kahlil-gibran/every-thought-i-have-imprisioned-in-expression-i-must-free-by-my-deeds/) [Kahlil Gibran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kahlil-gibran/) > [It took me 20 years to buy an electric typewriter, because I was afraid it would be too sensitive. 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