Ann Patchett, Bel Canto

"He realized now he was only just beginning to see the full extent to which it was his destiny to follow, to walk blindly into fates he could never understand. In fate there was reward, in turning over one's heart to God there was a magnificence that lay beyond description. At the moment one is sure that all is lost, look at what is gained!"

"It makes you wonder. All the brilliant things we might have done with our lives if only we suspected we knew how."