Philippe Petit on the past and present tenses

Philippe Petit:

Eleven years ago, when my young daughter died without warning, the dean of the Cathedral Church of St. John the Divine, the Very Rev. James Parks Morton, came to my side. He offered me guidance from his heart, but quite commandingly: “Speak of her in the present; you must not use the past tense!”

When asked today, “Do you have children?” I answer, “Yes, I have a daughter named Gypsy. She is 9 1/2 years old, and no longer alive.”

So are my twin towers, our twin towers, gone, yet still standing tall, made of thin air, yet gloriously defying the sunset on this warm late summer evening.

Look at them!

From “My Towers, Our Towers” (Wall Street Journal, September 13, 2003)