I have been all over the world. I have met some wonderful people, lots of them very simple, whom nobody will ever hear about, but who have been fabulous to me.

I was born in Montreal and came from a lower-middle-class family.

My mother was a wonderful, wonderful woman with a lovely voice who hated housework, hated cooking even more and loved her children. She was always arranging church activities such as a bazaar.

I have had five phenomenal children, a great husband and, even though we are separated, we are good friends.

It makes one a better person to have had hardships and to have overcome hardships and not to blame anybody else for your mistakes.

After Bruno Walter, my career went in leaps and bounds. I have had 35 years of a career that is just incredible, and a wonderful time all over the world.

Perhaps, once I am gone, the one thing I might be remembered for is having sung a great deal of Mahler with a great many phenomenal conductors. It is wonderful music, very spiritual.

Singing beautiful melodies is one thing, but to deliver the text so that the people understand it, even in a foreign language, has to be worked at very hard.

Another turn in my life happened when I took on the Canada Council.

I have three grandchildren and am hoping for 20.

If somebody asks me to recommend a young, good singer, I always do.

Acquaintances are numerous. Friends are few. Enemies many.

What will I do if I find myself with a heart?" "Lose it constantly, I imagine.

Every life is a march from innocence, through temptation, to virtue or vice.

You need Power, only when you want to do something harmful otherwise Love is enough to get everything done.

We and the beasts are kin.

We know nothing. And just because you know something to be true at this moment in your life or you feel that it is true, you can never be sure of yourself.

Remember, we without our roots and branches cannot be saved.

To take advantage of unexpected opportunities, we must leave ourselves available.

This war on terrorism is going to continue for an indefinite period of time.

Finding mechanisms for putting carbon back into landscapes enhances biodiversity. More biodiverse ecosystems store more carbon, more securely and are more resilient to the impacts of climate change.