Crikey!

I have a very vague recollection of when Elvis Presley died. I have quite a few memories of when John Lennon passed away. I was in high school when Stevie Ray Vaughan went to the Great Stage in the Sky and I shed more than a few tears, as I had only recently begun to truly discover his work. When Dale Earnhardt died, it shook the racing world to its core. No sport had suffered such a tragic, high-profile loss since baseball lost Roberto Clemente.

We are often saddened by the death of a celebrity, especially those who are so dedicated to their respective fields of endeavor and the pursuit of excellence that they raise the bar and become legends while they still walk the earth. But the one that hit me hardest and still hurts the most came on September 4^th, 2006.

I was spending Labor Day weekend at Silver Strand State Beach with my family, always a great time. On that morning, I walked to the newspaper rack and an article on the front page of the UT made my heart sink.

The caption read “Steve Irwin Dead”

I shook my head in disbelief, and through my tear-clouded eyes, I expected to read about a car accident, or maybe a plane crash. Yet I learned that The Crocodile Hunter died doing what he loved best; introducing the rest of the world to dangerous animals. On that day, I tried my best to avoid others. I was hurt, hurt bad. Steve Irwin had fast become one of my favorite TV personalities. Wait, scratch that. Steve had become one of my favorite human beings of all. His enthusiasm was contagious; his love of wildlife was unmatched. I walked up and down the beach all morning, my face wetter from the tears than it was from the ocean spray. I remember getting a little irritated with those around me; as I broke the news, they were back into regular conversation just minutes later. I couldn’t fathom how they’d react to such devastating news with little more than “Oh wow”. Later in the day, I came to some semblance of peace, enjoying the sunset with my grandmother, uncles, aunts and cousins. As I looked toward the ocean again, I thought of how the mighty Pacific stretched all the way to Australia. At that moment, I felt a strange warmth inside, thinking to myself “He was just across the water”.

After a few drinks, I started having thoughts of wanting to catch and kill every stingray I could find. I carelessly did a lot of that across the bay as a youngster and a temporary rage brought on that desire once again. Yet it passed as soon as it came and common sense settled back in. I never knew the man personally and next to Teddy Roosevelt, I don’t think there’s anyone else in history I would rather meet and spend time with. Killing stingrays, or any animal was the last thing he would’ve wanted, so I just continued walking up and down the shore, praying thanks for such a wonderful man. One of the few who touched the lives of millions he’d never met.

When I was young, the only TV exposure we had to wild animals was the occasional PBS special or Mutual of Omaha’s “Wild Kingdom” shows on Saturday afternoons. On the rare occasion we’d catch a show on reptiles; I’d laugh at how my brother would get the willies when watching a snake on TV. Only later did I get the same feeling when watching the Crocodile Hunter. Up until that point, anyone dealing with venomous snakes wore high, thick leather boots, long sleeves, gloves and carried a snake stick. So naturally, when this crazy Australian came along in shorts and the only stick he used was a twig or branch he found only after he spotted a brown snake or cobra, then watching him grab them by the tail you can bet I got a few goose bumps!

Every show brought a new adventure and while the primary focus was on reptiles, there were always more than a few birds and mammals featured.

While reading the book he co-wrote with his wife Terri, I found another opportunity to get to know the man I admired so much. While reveling in story after story of rescuing crocodiles I gained even more respect for him; which is pretty much a miracle since I didn’t think it was possible to respect him more than I already did. As a father myself I smile at Terri’s account of the day their daughter Bindi was born. Apparently, Steve excitedly toured the hospital with little Bindi, joyfully showing her off to the staff and new parents in the maternity ward. It brings me great joy to know that he and Terri brought two beautiful children into the world, ensuring his legacy will be passed down the generations.

Many people were critical of him for feeding a crocodile with one hand while holding his one month old son Bob in the other. Would I do something like that? Definitely not. Then again, I’m no croc expert. But do I feel he shouldn’t have done it? Well I’ll just say this; he’d been around “salties” all his life and if he says his infant son was in no danger, I’m inclined to believe him more than I’d believe any of his critics. The man was an expert on crocs, an expert on snakes and pretty much an expert on all types of Australian wildlife.

But as I’ve studied him, I’d have to say that his expertise in being a great human being was his biggest trait, even bigger than his already larger than life TV personality. As much as he loved wildlife, the only thing he loved more was his family.

His parents Bob and Lyn built the Queensland Reptile and Fauna Park, later named Australia Zoo; in the name of wildlife conservation. All proceeds go right back into the zoo; improving exhibits, continuing research and promoting wildlife education. Of all the tenets of the zoo, the one that I like the most is the “Animals First” policy; which as they stated in their book, is something of a departure of the “guests first” policy within most businesses. Of course, the creation and continuation of Australia Zoo was never intended as a business in the traditional sense; the one and only mission was and still is to conserve wildlife. And in addition to their hands on work and expertise, the driving force behind the television shows was to educate the world and create awareness.

Oh how I miss those shows! You can still see some episodes on YouTube or for even better viewing order some of their DVD’s.

My all time favorite episode dealt with rattlesnakes. After dinner one evening I turned on the TV and caught The Crocodile Hunter a few minutes after the hour. Something was vaguely familiar about the terrain and when he mentioned his search for rattlesnakes, I knew what I was thinking was true.Steve Irwin was in my own back yard! With one of his shooting locations was in the back country of San Diego County. To this day, I wish I could have learned of his visit. How exciting it would have been to meet him in person!

Nowadays, when I’m driving to work in Alpine, I think of how excited he would be to scramble across the granite boulders in search of a Red Diamondback or the smaller and nearly invisible Speckled Rattlesnake. Often, I think to myself “He may have driven down this very road!”

In doing some research on him lately, I came across some memes that poked fun at the fact that he dealt with some of the most dangerous animals on the planet. It bugged me to see that some of them were sarcastic, shallow attempts at humor. A few just looked upon him as some nut. More than anything, I’m sad for those who have no idea about the importance of wildlife the world over. I’m sad for those who don’t appreciate the way Steve Irwin dedicated his entire life and being to conservation and education of wild animals. Closed-mindedness prevents some people from seeing him for what he truly was, a Wildlife Warrior.

But above all else, I’m grateful that such a man lived. He definitely affected my life. In this blog, I seek to tell the stories of those whose greatness is achieved by tireless dedication to the greater good.  That was definitely Steve. As if his constantly putting himself in harm’s way for the benefit of education wasn’t enough, Steve and Terri agreed long ago that ALL proceeds from television and merchandising would go right back into their Zoo.

As with any person you read about in this particular blog; Steve life challenges me to take a long, deep look at myself.

What am I doing for the common good?
What am I contributing to something larger than myself?
What legacy do I hope to leave?

These are questions I ask myself every day, yet I am not exactly looking for the answers. What I am doing is looking for ways to create the answers. Appreciating and learning from Steve Irwin’s life work has helped me on that path. Reading his story and studying his work is something I consider a challenge; if he accomplished what he did in his 44 years, what could I accomplish? Surely I won’t become a globally-known wildlife advocate but who knows, maybe one of my children will pioneer a new way to milk rattlesnakes, or develop a better feeding technique for baby gorillas. If they do choose a life path that involves wildlife conservation, you can bet that Steve Irwin had something to do with it. His influence on me will be passed on to my children and from them to theirs and on down the line; just as there are surely millions of parents who grew up watching the Crocodile Hunter in action.

Steve Irwin may be gone, but his work continues. In a a world of instant gratification, of people who will share a meme and pass it off as wisdom; it warms my heart to know there are still those who still dedicate their lives to something bigger than themselves.

Rest in Peace, Mate.