We all have heroes, and maybe we have contemplated how we might react should one of our idols pass. I have, but never expected Steve Irwin to be the first. Upon hearing the news the initial shock made way for the inevitable grief, and I spent the best part of the morning resisting the urge to cry. I know this seems odd, such an open display of grief for someone I have never met, but Steve Irwin had, and has had, a profound affect on my life. I started watching the Crocodile Hunter when I was 15 and remember being compelled, captivated and astonished by the enthusiasm, energy and magnetism Steve Irwin possessed. I had always had a passion for wildlife but he invigorated it to levels that never existed before. Irwin himself was a marvel, a force of nature, and as I write this and the terrible reality becomes painfully clear, I know that something great has been lost. Something lost more penetrating than the tangible loss to the conservation movement. Something greater than Irwin’s ability to reach 200 million people world wide, and engage them in the issues of wildlife conservation and preservation. What has been lost is a spirit, a soul and a dynamic, presented with such altruistic grace, as to now deprive us all of that child like innocence and passion that we often forget exists.

As I reflect on this untimely, tragic and indiscriminate loss I can’t help but feel that we have all lost something. In a world where ubiquitous mediocrity is celebrated, Steve Irwin stood as a beacon of hope, joy and unparalleled brilliance. He loved his life, his family and his job, and if we take one thing from his life it should be to apply his enthusiasm to everything we do. Although his physical flame has diminished his metaphysical beacon still burns the horizons of our minds. Steve Irwin will surely be missed and my thoughts are now with his wife Terri, his children Bindi and Bob and his friends. May he rest in the knowledge that he has achieved more in his short life than a million men have accomplished in their full lives. ‘The streets of heaven are full with one more angel tonight’.

Ben Fellows