The Yiddish proverb, "There is no one as deaf as he who will not listen," speaks simply to a basic truth. We have an epidemic of deafness in our world, and the result of not hearing one another in a meaningful way is a profound and poignant loneliness. As plants shrivel without sun and water, we are dying in spirit for a lack of deep listening.
— Sue Patton Thoele, The Woman's Book of Spirit