“If you can remember it, you weren’t there.”
I once read this on a wall at a bar in Tyrol. Why do I think about this? Because T has changed the narrative of his life time and again. What began in Meggen continued in Zofingen and then in – as it seemed to us at the time – the big city of Zurich. He went across the French border with his wife Marie-Françoise, known as “Muriel”, then to Eastern Europe, then he made the big leap to Asia, and then Africa, and now who knows where else. He’s always ready for a totally new challenge. This is due to his dynamic personality, which differs considerably from that of the average human. He has a lot of refreshing qualities.
Even when we revived the office in the Ringier-owned business editorial department very many years ago – which felt like the period between the wars – he was characterised by an extremely competitive drive. My existence seemed to be a motivation for him in that respect: he wanted to be better at football (and he succeeded). Be better at jumping, cycling, playing Jass, driving a car (well…).
What always impressed me was how he wrote: he sat down at the machine and visibly went into a completely different physical state; he literally penetrated the typewriter in a total state of concentration and the sentences just flowed out. I would have liked to be able to do that too.
He should be really satisfied with himself – but he probably still won’t be.
