“There was something terrible, but also something sad and melancholy in this long cry uttered by the Russian infantry as they staged an attack. As it crossed the cold water, it lost its fervour. Instead of valour or gallantry, you could hear the sadness of a soul parting with everything that it loved, calling on its nearest and dearest to wake up, to lift their head from their pillows and hear for the last time the voice of a father, a husband, a son or a brother...”

“Somewhere a bird sang, its chant hanging plaintive and melancholy in the still air...I think it's a sort of lark or something. Our tradition has it that they sing with the voices of lost lovers. If the stars are smiling on them, you will hear its mate call back in a moment.”

“Sometimes at night, when I wake up real late, I can hear my dad talking to God. He whispers, but I still hear him.I even hear him crying sometimes, when God says something sad.”

“I hear noises in the darkness, I hear sadness in your voice, I hear noises in the darkness, I hear sadness inside you.”

“All through autumn we hear a double voice: one says everything is ripe; the other says everything is dying. The paradox is exquisite. We feel what the Japanese call "aware"--an almost untranslatable word meaning something like "beauty tinged with sadness.”

“Cole, I know I haven’t earned it, but would you mind very much if I tried the organ?” Blake’s voice filled the empty church.Cole smiled sadly. “Of course, brother. It would be an honor to hear you play again.”Cole’s despair settled into his bones. His crying soul now had the worst kind of company: another soul crying just as loud.”