In South Florida this morning, the copious showers morphed to heavenly sobs as I opened YahooNews and read the headlines that Steve Irwin was killed by a stingray today in the waters off Cairns.
Steve had a profoundly personal meaning for me- not the least of which were his total lack of pretension, infectious enthusiam, love of adventure, and love for the animal world. He knew nothing of boredom and better yet, no need to be "cool." In this day where matching Supplex ensembles, scarves, and tented caps spawn Lawrence of Arabia clones, Steve's khakis and boots were a real breath of fresh air.
As he swam over a creature that he meant no harm to, the ray reacted wildly as it flexed its body, and drove its barb into his chest in a moment of underwater Caeserian irony. Yet the ray was doing "what it does", as was Steve and he died in his greatest moments of love and inspiration. How many people can lay claim to that? For the future finger-waggers, I'll also point out that "caution" is a relative term that rarely finds its way alongside inspiration or passion...so, take your choice. He did!
Jan
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