Lauren and The Crocodile Hunter

Lauren lost her hero today. She admired Steve Irwin the Crocodile Hunter. When she discovered Animal Planet awhile ago, she zeroed on his show. (Truthfully, I was relieved that she was watching a show about animals than cartoons.) He and his show sparked such a fire in her. She was already deeply interested in animals. She can remember minute details about snakes and crocodiles and can spout facts from books by heart. In Steve Irwin she found someone else as passionate about animals.

When we took six weeks last winter to travel to Asia, we decided to do a detour to Brisbane, Australia. As we drove up the coast, Lauren marveled at the many billboards of Australia Zoo and Steve Irwin along the highway. She counted the hours until we can visit the Zoo. Finally on her birthday, we drove to Australia Zoo. She knew the names of the turtles and the crocodiles. She told us stories from the show about those animals. We patiently waited for the crocodile show in the Crocoseum in the hot sun not even guaranteeing that Steve Irwin will be there. But he was. Lauren's face was full of awe, excitement and disbelief. There he was talking about crocodiles and she was in the edge of her seat. She was seeing her hero in person. What a treat!

He is a hero to Lauren. She will miss him.