My first dream was to travel. I was attracted to different places, different colors of skin, different food. When I was 18 in 1977, I went to Europe with my accordion and discovered the pleasure of entertaining people.
When you are up there, feeling infinite space, the earth looks like a fragile planet against the immense universe. We are just another fleeting species, passing by. I do believe there is life elsewhere, and we are not alone. But not having found an alternate place for now, it is crucial to take care of the one place we do have.
Ironically, the opportunity to go into space brings you back down to Earth big time! My decision must also take into account my children, my family and my friends. I must be at peace with this decision. And I was. I weighed the risks without letting fear feed on fear. There is no room for fear in my life.
Sometimes just being on a beach with my loved ones is all the adventure I need. I am a happy camper and continue to be a citizen of the world. I have yet to discover other cultures, other peoples' dreams and treasures. I will always be a traveler who is discovering beautiful Gaia.
Our biggest goal is to continue to force ourselves to always start our creative work on a white page and not take advantage of past successes and challenging ourselves.
I always have traveled with a camera throughout my life, but I always had my old 35mm film camera. When I was training to go into space, the only equipment there was a digital camera. I went through a fast-track class on Earth. It actually was fun, though I'm basically a dinosaur with computers.
Actually, I was the seventh private explorer but the first Canadian 'space clown.' I never dreamed of going into space; I just dreamed of traveling. But I admit that space is an incredible destination and the absolute traveling experience.
I have seen many successful people fail after they start fearing they might lose what they have built.
All my life I've been flirting. I'm no different. I still carry on the same way.
I like to not be too involved in the beginning and during the process so as to keep this fresh look and be able to give constructive recommendation on the final production.
I believe in nurturing creativity and offering a haven for creators, enabling them to develop their ideas to the fullest. With more and more talented creators being drawn to Cirque in an environment that fulfills them, these are ideal to continue developing great new shows.
I'm a humanist. I always believed, even with Cirque du Soliel, that this is my way to contribute to a better world. I believe I'm very privileged, but many people face the reality when they wake up in the morning of not having food or a glass of water. Life's been good to me, and I believe you have to feed the circle of life.
Inside every adult there's still a child that lingers. We're happiness merchants - giving people the opportunity to dream like children.
Adaption of the human body in space is not yet mastered. As soon as you hit space, you feel your body is going through a period of mutation. There's no blood in your head; you have a hard time swallowing. We're not born to naturally be in space.
I am an atheist. I was born a Catholic, but after I had traveled to Northern Ireland with some Catholic friends, and we had a horrible experience with the English Protestant police, I lost all taste for formal religion.
Of all the religions, I am most partial to Buddhism.
Life is full of adventure. There's no such thing as a clear pathway.
I don't believe in pitfalls. I believe in taking risks and not doing the same thing twice.
We are in a position of financial and social power, and we could be agents of change in our society. Without pretension, I believe we could be a nice little gardener who takes care of the garden, and hopefully our neighbor will do the same. Then, maybe we'll achieve a better world.
I do like the thrill of risk-taking, but it's always carefully calculated. I have done many high risk undertakings, but I have always measured the stakes. Not feeding the fear nor the doubt. But I also believe that you need to fuel passion in whatever you do. This is what I am trying to teach my children today.
