“And at that moment, a lilting melody lifts to the moon as a single sparrow sings.”

“My sparrow, she flickers and wakes and sings and sings. ”

“Still, I look down, and the grass is so green, I cannot understand how it does not wither and die with sorrow.~Song of the Sparrow”

“I am Elainedughter of Barnard of Ascolat.Motherless.Sisterless.I sing these words to you now,because the point of light grows smallerever smaller now,ever more distant now.And with this song, I pray I maypush back the tides of war and death.So, I sing these wordsthat this light, this tinyray of light and hope may live on.I dare not hope that Imay live on too.”

“Child, think not of those things, those dark possibilities. Your father and brothers are here with you today. Lavain will tug at your braids, Tirry will sing you songs, and your father will see his wife's beauty in you. Savor their love today. And it will never leave you.”

“I wish I could say we all lived happily ever after. I can't. But I can say we lived. Our love for Nate lives, and he's left us this piece of himself in his art; it was his gift to us. We know him through his art, and I can take comfort in that. I guess the thing about high school is, it's the moment when you start to cross from a being a kid to being an adult, and this journey to know yourself begins. Nate's journey ended to early, and I thought I had to run away to some far-off land to start mine. But, for now, it seems to me that I have enough to explore right here. There's a whole continent to discover in myself, and I know that it's love - love for my parents, my friends, my brother, and my art - that will guide me. Love will be my map.”

“I do not tell her about how much I look forward to going to the Wright barn. How those couple of hours in his studio feel like an escape, a refuge. Nor do I tell Rachel that I think Damian has the most beautiful hands I've ever seen, that he walks like a cat, that he has the clearest eyes, which seem able to see absolutely everything about me. That he seems to be the loneliest person I've ever met, and it breaks my heart. All of these things feel private. Precious. And I don't want to share them with Rachel. Not yet, anyway.”