Book: Steve and Me by Terri Irwin

I remember driving down a road in rural Ohio one day in 2006 listening to a news program on the radio. They broke the news that Steve Irwin had died. I remember the moment very well.

I hadn't thought much about him recently. I think everyone was watching the show and all, but he wasn't quit as much in the public eye at that time.

Still, the news was shocking, and it seemed so wrong. He was tough as nails and so likable. How could he be dead?

I think there are some people that come along in pop culture that are just amazing. They do whats right, and they try to promote a good cause. They devote their entire life to a cause. Fred Rogers comes to mind. John Walsh is another. Steve is in that group.

Anyway, the world just didn't feel the same. A great person was no longer with us.

Terri Irwin put a very nice book together about Steve's life, their meeting each other, and their work together. I don't want to sound sappy, but this is a very sweet book.

Terri talks about her work with cougars in Oregon, and how that influenced her eventually meeting Steve. They pretty much fall for each other immediately, even though they live in different countries. I don't want to give anything away, but there is a very sweet photo taken of the two together on the first day they meet!

The book talks about Steve's ability to catch crocs like no one else. And, make no mistake, he was wrestling and catching them to help save them.

As he would catch them, he would sometimes set up a camera to tape the almost supernatural encounter. Some TV people saw the amateur video and knew they had a potential star!

In fact, Steve and Terri work on an early Crocodile Hunter episode on their honeymoon!

Steve Irwin, I think is frozen in many of our memories as a good guy who was tough. A bit of a Superman. An honest chap, fighting for a good cause. His death still seems so flukish that we can remember him as somewhat of an undefeated champion. He was a loyal husband, a caring father, he was concerned about conservation, and he could wrestle a crocodile.

Still, in the end of the book, Terri talks about her getting the news that Steve had died. She talks honestly about her dealing with those emotions, and her last moments with Steve.

I absolutely love this book.