Is it possible for a 45-year-old man to have a hero? Is it possible for that man to have a schoolboy crush on another man 1 year younger? Is it possible for him to feel a profound and sad loss for someone he doesn't know?
Yes. Unabashedly, Yes.
Steve Irwin is dead.
The Crocodile Hunter was more than any reviewer's simple words. Yes, he was goofy. He was nuts. He was a caricature of himself, the stereotype of the Aussie Outback Guy. But he was much more than that. He was a modern day Tarzan. He was Lewis and Clark, Peter Pan, Captain Kangaroo, and Charles Darwin all wrapped up in a 21st century package. He was the embodiment of every young boy's daydreams of adventure and danger, the unbridled delight of dirt and sky and living things.
He was a grown man's hero as well. He and his wife Terri are a love story for the ages. All the superlatives apply. The brash, dashing wild man. The sweet, beautiful, smart woman. A serendipity of mind, heart, compassion. A melding of the sexes, bringing out the best of each other, bringing forth children. Together, they wrapped the bonds of familial love, courage, and determination around everything they did. The world recognized it, felt it, loved it.
Never a bad thought expressed. Never an apology for passion. Never a bad day.
Always life, and the world, was a playground. Infinite, curious, respected.
DO NOT Rest In Peace, Steve-O. Forever wrestle and tumble and laugh with teeth and claws and fur and scales. Let the Halls of Hereafter echo with your infectious and childlike joy of all things created.
Show God that heaven is not up there, but in the heart of a normal man with the supernatural gift to see it here on Earth.
Sometimes there is only one.
5 comments:
I thought "how fitting" when I heard the news. What better way? I think TGIUTK has it about right as to the method of mortal coil shuffling.
But too damned young.
You said it better than I did. I will miss him a lot.
Hear, Hear! Steve will be sorely missed.
And now this hero from my own personal Parthenon has passed into immortality.
I hope there are some fun, bigass creatures up there for him to wrestle...
Steve Irwin kind of freaked me out at times. I think he may have had ADHD. But the love and friendship that he had with his wife? Priceless.
great tribute, and very well put. I too did a small post on this the other day as well, but like someone else said, the job I did on it was no where nearly as good as yours.
BD
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