I was born in a world of opera, theatre, films, poetry, art, and therefore, out of the wire, I made a stage. That's why they call me a high wire artist.
Philippe PetitRead
It is treacherous on a high wire to change your focus point and suddenly look down.
Interpretation
Changing your focus can lead to fear and loss of balance in challenging situations.
Philippe Petit's quote highlights the importance of maintaining focus and composure, especially in high-stakes situations. Looking down, or shifting your attention away from your goal, can evoke fear and destabilize your progress, suggesting that courage is necessary to persevere despite uncertainty.
In practice
During a motivational speech about overcoming fears and challenges.
I was born in a world of opera, theatre, films, poetry, art, and therefore, out of the wire, I made a stage. That's why they call me a high wire artist.
On a very long and very high wire, I will not hope to not be blown off by high winds. I will have the certitude that such could not happen.
Many people use the words 'death defying' or 'death wishing' when they talk about wire-walking. Many people have asked me: 'So do you have a death wish?' After doing a beautiful walk, I feel like punching them in the nose. It's indecent. I have a life wish.
It's very easy to walk on a wire if you spend a whole lifetime practicing for it.
I am not up there by chance. I am there by choice. And I know the wire. And I know my limits. And I am a madman of details.
If I had been born in the circus, my parents would have pushed me on that little high wire at four years old. That's when the body is most limber to learn those acrobatics.
You might not be a big fan of politics, but you can still participate. All you need to do is vote for people you believe will work on these issues, and if they don't work the way they should, then it is your responsibility to call them, organize a town hall, and demand that they show up - hold them accountable.
For years and years, I convinced myself that I was unbreakable, an animal with an animal strength or something not human at all. Me, I told people, I take damage like a wall, a brick wall that never falls down, never feels anything, never flinches or remembers. I am one woman but I carry in my body all the stories I have ever been told, women I have known, women who have taken damage until they tell themselves they can feel no pain at all.
I was at Yale from 1953 to 1957, and I tried to commit suicide in my freshman year because I was gay, and I thought I was the only person in the school who was. I was just totally and utterly miserable.
What doesn't kill me just makes me stronger
I am convinced that the truest act of courage, the strongest act of manliness, is to sacrifice ourselves for others in a totally nonviolent struggle for justice. To be a man is to suffer for others. God help us to be men!
As someone who wasn't heavily supported or resourced as a young person when I was going through the hardest times of my life, I'm used to operating outside of systems. The trans movement has always been that way.
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