First Erin asked me if I've heard of Christian, the Lion. I responded that I knew there was a book entitled thusly, but that I was unfamiliar with the story. She warned me to prepare myself for an emotional story of true love and friendship, and I was expecting some version of The Lion King to appear on my screen. Instead I witnessed the short story of a relationship between two men and a lion cub, set to Whitney Houston's "I Will Always Love You." Before I go any further, watch the video...
Now that you're in tears over seeing this wild animal and his wild animal wife cuddle with these two full-grown men, I'd like to say a few more words about how this is a "happily ever after."
First, Rendall and Bourke, Christian's saviors, rescued him from Harrods department store. The lion was sold to the establishment from a zoo (can't figure out how that happened) and made quite a nuisance of himself by escaping regularly and chewing on merchandise. Although Rendall and Bourke introduced Christian to life outside of his cage, they realized within a year that the meager space and exercise that they could provide the lion was simply not enough for him to live a full life. With the help of Adamson, a conservationalist, the two men were able to release Christian back into the wild, and later relocate him.
Most of us would expect Christian's instincts to have fully taken over his psyche in a year's time, and yet we were all surprised (and moved, thanks in part to Whitney) when Christian not only recognized Rendall and Bourke, but also literally cuddled with them. It was like Christian was thanking his saviors for giving him the means to live a normal, lion's life, and the men were glad that their sacrifice (saying goodbye to their friend, Christian) resulted in him successfully leading a pride. Christian and his pride lived happily ever after on the savannah in Africa, and Rendall and Bourke lived happily ever after knowing that they saved a life.
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