Almost 12 years ago, on September 4th, 2006, the world lost the beloved TV personality and so-called "crocodile hunter", Steve Irwin. The 44-year-old passed away after being stabbed through the heart by a stingray, and his death caused ripples of grief across the globe.
The incident came as a shock to almost everybody, as those who had followed Irwin's work had seen him tackle creatures that were far more dangerous than a stingray. However, in a recent interview on ABC's Anh's Brush With Fame, Steve's widow - 53-year-old Terri Irwin - revealed that her husband may have been acutely aware of what sort of fate awaited him.
According to her, Steve had apparently made a prediction in the weeks and months leading up to his death that he would not be around for much longer.
"You know he never thought he would have a long life," she said. "He just always kind of had this sense that his life would be cut short. I remember him saying to me, 'I don’t think I am going to film anymore, I think I am just going to spend time with my kids.'"
The mother-of-two then went on to say that she missed her husband terribly, and always believed that he was her "soulmate".
"I always felt with Steve, if I hadn’t married Steve I wouldn’t have gotten married," she explained.
"I wasn’t even dating, I wasn’t even looking. I was 27-years-old and figured my life was going to be my work and met Steve and fell instantly in love.
"I feel that we had that soulmate thing. And in the 10 years since, I haven’t dated or even thought about it. Because I’m not afraid to be on my own ... It’s just really hard not having Steve. I’m just lonely for Steve if that makes sense."
Even now, more than a decade after his passing, Terri still feels a raw sense of loss for Steve.
"Grief hits you at the most bizarre times. So I might be talking to biology students and it will remind me of Steve and I will burst into tears," she said.
"You don’t ever get over grief. It changes, but you never wake up one morning and go, ‘Oh, I’m done with that’. That was the challenge in the journey after Steve died."
Despite losing such a huge part of their family and their livelihood, however, the Irwin family still continues to work with animals and educate others in order to continue Steve's legacy.
Bindi Irwin, Steve and Terri's daughter, has gone on to become an actress and singer - as well as continuing to work at the Australia Zoo. Her brother, Robert Irwin, has his own TV show about animals, and has closely followed in the footsteps of his father by sharing his enthusiasm for all sorts of creatures and critters.
Perhaps Steve did know that his career - and his life - would be cut short. If he did, though, we can only hope that he sensed his family would go on to continue his legacy, and that his loss would still be felt by millions in the years afterwards.
