AUGUST 7th - Inspirational Tightrope

Way back on June 17th, I made a brief reference to Philippe Petit and the extraordinary wonders of late-night PBS, specifically the really cool documentary (it’s like Ocean’s 11 with a tightrope instead of a heist) Man on Wire about Petit’s illegal and breathtaking feat of tightroping a 200 foot wire between the World Trade Center Towers on (you guessed it) August 7th, 1974. I've also expounded on Nik Wallenda’s feats of funambulism because I find the act of walking a tightrope both outrageous and strangely fascinating. Just thinking about it puts that little knot of anxiety in my stomach that normal people only get when they peer over the edge of a high balcony and realize how grave gravity could be. And while I have also previously noted that funambulism is not a particularly useful skill for everyday life, it is exhilaratingly breathtaking to behold. If you look at it just right, you can't see the wire and it’s as if the walker is stepping on nothing but air, floating in the atmosphere by some unnamed magic. The whole thing just seems impossible. Nothing more so than Petit’s famous walk. Just the logistics of setting up the wire were crazy. (Watch the doc and you'll see what I mean). And maybe that’s why I find funambulists so interesting. They push the limits of the sane and rational to accomplish something that most people would see as impossible. So here’s to the gloriously crazy Philippe Petit and the reminder that passion can propel people to tremendous heights. Just try not to fall off the wire. Man Falls off Wire doesn't have quite the same inspirational ring to it. But Petit knew that a life chasing the impossible is a life worth living. What is life if you don't chase the impossible once in a while? Boring, that's what. Who knows, you may end up impressing Thomas Jefferson. Or discovering an albino midget. At the very least you won't be boring.

This day has been Marked.

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