~ Terri Irwin: „Steve & Me“ ~

Es gibt Menschen im Leben, denen man nie persönlich begegnet, die einen aber trotzdem mit ihrer Art und ihrer Persönlichkeit auf positive Weise beeinflussen. Ein solcher Mensch wurde am 4. September 2006 aus der Mitte seiner Lieben gerissen und dieser Verlust ist auch heute noch spürbar.

Ich rede von Steve Irwin, dem passionierten und leidenschaftlichen Tierliebhaber, Tierschützer, Vater und enthusiastischem Menschen, der Tiere und das Abenteuer liebte.

There are people in your life that you haven’t met personally but who have a huge impact on your life with their personality and the life they are living. One of those people was tragically torn away from the lifes of those who loved him most on 4th September 2006 – and even today his loss is something you can feel.

I talk about Steve Irwin, the passionate and amazing animal lover, animal welfare activist, father and enthusiastic human who loved animals of all kind and the adventure.

Viele von euch kennen ihn vielleicht aus seiner Fernsehserie „Crocodile Hunter“, die ihn weltweit bekannt machte. Später folgte auch noch eine Sendereihe speziell für Kinder mit dem Namen „Croc Files“.

Some of you may know him because of his series „Crocodile Hunter“ which made him a household name. Later on there was also a series for kids with the name „Croc Files“.

Now I have read the book of Terri Irwin and everything feels like it has been yesterday – the funny things and also the tragical ones. From the first time they saw each other to the adventures they had with their children on to the tragical accident where Steve lost his life.

Nun habe ich Terri Irwins Buch gelesen und es fühlt sich an, als wenn es gestern gewesen wäre – die lustigen Begebenheiten, aber auch die tragischen. Von den ersten Begegnungen der beiden bis hin zu den Ausflügen mit ihren Kindern und dem tragischen Unfall, der Steve das Leben kostete.

„It was October 1991. I was Terri Raines, a twenty-seven-year-old Oregon girl in Australia on an unlikely quest to find homes for rescued American cougars. A reptile park wasn’t going to be interested in a big cat. I headed through the pleasant spring heat toward the park thinking pessimistic thoughts. […] Then I saw the man. A tall, solid twentysomething (he appeared younger than he was, and had actually turned twenty-nine that February), dressed in khaki shirt and shorts, barefoot, with blond flyaway hair underneath a big Akubra hat and a black-banded wristwatch on his left wrist. Even though he was big and muscular, there was something kind and approachable about him too.“

(page 1/2)

Dieser Oktober ist der Beginn einer lebenslangen Liebe und Verbundenheit, die nicht nur dem menschlichen Partner gilt, sondern auch der gemeinsamen Arbeit mit und für die Tiere und deren natürliches Umfeld.

This October is the beginning of a lifelong love and bond that not only exists between the human partners but also is towards the shared work with and for the animals and their natural habitat.

If you are reading this book you can definitely feel the love and affection that connects Terri and Steve from the first moment on and therefore its that much sadder both of them couldn’t grow old and grey together. But Terri is keeping Steve’s memory and is continuing with his work at the Australia Zoo in Beerwah.

Wenn man dieses Buch liest, spürt man beim Lesen die Liebe und Zuneigung, die bei Terri und Steve vom ersten Moment an da war und die sie verbunden hat und deshalb ist es um so trauriger, dass sie nicht gemeinsam alt und grau werden durften. Aber Terri bewahrt Steves Andenken und führt seine Arbeit fort – im Australia Zoo in Beerwah, Australien.

***

Terri erzählt natürlich nicht nur von sich und Steve, sondern auch von ihrer Arbeit im Tierschutz, wobei sie sich auf Raubtiere spezialisierte und vor allem Pumas zu ihren Lieblingen zählte.

Not only is Terri telling about the story of her and Steve but also she tells about her work in the animal protection where she specialized on predatory mammals and has a special love for cougars.

„By taking Malina into the courtroom, I not only got press, I brought the hunters face-to-face with the animal they were trying to persecute. Instead of the snarling, terrifying demon of the night that they imagined stalking their children, they would see a beautiful, noble spirit of the wilderness. Malina changed people’s minds. I saw it happen.“

(page 21/22)

Steve and Terri lernen sich näher kennen und besuchen sich gegenseitig. Sie lernt viel über Steves Arbeit mit den Krokodilen, lernt den Australia Zoo und seine Mitarbeiter besser kennen, geht mit Steve in den australischen Busch und er zeigt ihr seine Zuneigung und Liebe auf besondere Art:

Steve and Terri get to know each other better and visit each other in their hometowns. She is learning much about his work with the crocodiles, gets to know the Australia Zoo and his co-workers and she goes to the australian bush with Steve and he shows her his affection and love in a very special way:

„But into the Burdekin we went, in our shorts, barefoot, picking our way through the stones, sticks and burrs umtil we got to the smooth rocks of the river. Steve jumped in. I was most cautious. As I edged toward deeper water, he blocked my path and moved himself around in front of me. „What are you doing?“ – He laughed. „I caught the last big male crocodile around here last year, but I can’t be too sure another one hasn’t moved in.“ – „So,“ I said, „you want to make sure to keep yourself between me and the rest of the river.“ – „Right-o, mate,“ he replied.

I thought, Is this guy for real? Most guys think they’re doing a girl a favor by opening a door, and here Steve was, putting himself between me and a croc.“

(page 46)

Diese Szene beschreibt gut das tiefe Gefühl, das zwischen den beiden besteht – und im Grunde genommen  ist das ganze Buch so aufgebaut. „Steve & Me“ ist eine wunderbare Hommage an einen wundervollen Menschen, der von vielen geliebt und bewundert wurde, der sich selbst immer zurücknahm und dem seine Familie über alles ging.

This scene really describes the deep feeling that exists between the two of them – and at heart the whole book is designed like this. „Steve & Me“ is a wonderful homage to an absolutely amazing human who was loved and admired by many but who always stood back and who always puts his family first.

Wir reisen mit Terri in die Vergangenheit und nehmen an den tierischen Abenteuern der beiden teil, die sich dann auch wieder in den Episoden des „Crocodile Hunter“ wiederfinden. Ich erinnere mich hier zum Beispiel an die Episode mit der kleinen Echse, die sich mit Steve messen wollte und ihn gebissen hat. Eine von vielen Episoden des Buches, die man mit einem kleinen wehmütigen Schmunzeln liest und die doch alles über Steves Wesen aussagt: er wollte das „wilde“ Leben zeigen, es den Menschen näher bringen und sie so daran erinnern, das alle Natur schützenswert ist:

We get to travel with Terri to the past and take part in some animal adventures of those two – some of which you could also see in episodes of the „Crocodile Hunter“. I remember f.e. the episode with the small lizard who thought its tougher than Steve and bit him. One of many episodes of the book where you read and smile a little bit nostalgic. Those moments tell everything about Steve and what he wanted to do: he wanted to show the wild nature and its animals and while doing this he wanted to tell them that everything natural is deserving protection.

„Coming back from the school, Steve suddenly slammed on the brakes, skidding over the dirt. He cursed himself. „I was going too fast,“ he said. „I think I ran over a bearded dragon.“ – He got out of the truck, completely crestfallen, until he discovered that the lizard was alive and well, sitting poised in the middle of the road. – Steve got the lizard off the road and then lay down on the dirt with it to get it on film. „What a little ripper,“ he said. „Look how he pops out his beard as a defense mechanism. He’s got all those spiny scales down his back to keep predators from eating him.“ – Steve was face-to-face with the lizard, which was all puffed up, trying to look intimidating. He was just inches away as he spoke with passion about the little desert dweller. The lizard, though, had other ideas. He decided he was a little bit tougher than Stevo. In an instant, the lizard had launched himself straight up in the air and latched onto Steve’s face. Steve jumped back, but not before he’d been solidly bitten on the nose. […] Steve took the opportunity to reiterate an important lesson. Whenever an animal nails you, it’s not the animal’s fault. It’s your fault.“

(pages 105/106)

Im Buch beschreibt Terri auch die besondere Beziehung, die Steve zu seiner Tochter Bindi hatte. Er zeigte ihr das wilde Leben im Australia Zoo und lehrte sie den Umgang mit Tieren. Von klein an brachte er ihr auch das Verhalten und den Umgang mit seinen Lieblingstieren bei, den Krokodilen. Sie war ebenso begeistert wie er.

In the book Terri also describes the special bond between Steve and his daughter Bindi. He showed her the wild life at Australia Zoo and taught her how to deal with animals. Since she was little he taught her everything he knew about his favorite animals: crocodiles. She was as excited as he was.

His being a dad had also impact on his life while filming. Steve always had a special sense for dealing with animals and also the animals were feeling the change in Steves life.

Seine Vaterschaft hat auch Auswirkungen auf das filmische Leben – Steve hatte schon immer einen besonderen Sinn für den Umgang mit Tieren und auch die Tiere spüren die große Veränderung in Steves Leben.

„Steve & Me“ erzählt aber auch von den Gefahren, die man eingeht, wenn man mit Raubtieren arbeitet. Es gibt eine Episode, die die Gefahr, die Naturgewalt des Regens und die wahre Freundschaft beinhaltet und einer der Höhepunkte des Buches ist.

Steve wird einige Zeit später Vater eines Sohnes. Auch diesem möchte er die Natur und seine Tiere näher bringen – kein schlechter Vorsatz, wenn man merkt, wie vorsichtig und gewissenhaft Steve vorgegangen ist.

„Steve & Me“ also tells about the dangers that you can face while working with predatory animals. There is an episode which sums up the danger, the nature force of rain and the true friendship and its one of the highlights of the book.

Little time later Steve became father of a son – and he also wants to show little Robert the nature and the animals – like he did with Bindi. Not a bad thing if you know how careful and faithful Steve was with his kids.

But sadly the media has changed a lot and his doing what he was always doing: sharing wildlife – was eyed really critical and the media were condemning him without knowing anything about his real life.

Allerdings hat sich die Medienlandschaft im Laufe der Zeit geändert und sein Verhalten wird kritischer betrachtet und vorverurteilt von Medien, die keine Ahnung von seinem Leben haben.

„Steve went off to the back block of the zoo to try to get his head around everything that had been happening. He built a fire and gazed into it.

I didn’t have to think about it. I knew beyond certainty that the most important part of Steve’s live was his family. His children meant everything to him. All of a sudden, my wonderful, sharing, protective husband was being condemned. His crime was sharing wildlife experiences with Robert, exactly as he had done for the last five and a half years with Bindi. […]

I stood by Steve’s side and watched his heart break. I couldn’t believe the mean-spirited, petty, awful people in the world. […] I have seen Tasmanian devils battle over a carcass. I have seen lionesses crowding a kill, dingoes on the trail of a feral piglet, an adult croc trashing its prey to pieces.

But never, in all the animal world, have I witnessed anything to match the casual cruelty of the human being.“

(pages 212/213)

Das gemeinsame Leben von Steve und Terri ist viel zu schnell vorüber gegangen, aber seine Kinder sind weiterhin im Tierschutz aktiv – genau wie Terri, die den Australia Zoo leitet. Sie werden alles tun, um Steves Leben zu würdigen und seine Arbeit fortzuführen.

The life of Terri and Steve together wasn’t a long one but their children are active wildlife warriors as well as Terri who is working hard at Australia Zoo. They will do everything they can to continue with Steves work and be a worthy representative of his life.

***

Es ist schon so: die Besten gehen immer zu früh. Unfälle passieren nun einmal und dieses war ein besonders tragischer.

It always seems to be this way: the best go too soon. Accidents happen and this one was a really tragic one.

But here’s how Terri put it wonderfully in her book – Steve never left completely:

Aber wie hat Terri so schön in ihrem Buch geschrieben:

„And finally, a huge thank-you to my husband, Steve. You are now the angel leaning over my shoulder, whispering in my ear that I can do anything – you always believed in me.“

(page 273)

***

„Steve & Me“ ist definitiv lesenswert, zum einen, wenn man sich an die Vergangenheit erinnern möchte und einen Teil mit der Irwin-Familie verbringen will, aber auch, um sich vielleicht ganz neu mit dem Menschen Steve Irwin zu beschäftigen und seinem Enthusiasmus und seiner Liebe zu Tieren folgen will.

„Steve & Me“ is definitely something worth reading. May it be because you want to take a look into the past with the Irwin Family but also to refocus on the human being that was Steve Irwin and to learn new things about his passion for wildlife and all animals.