Have you ever seen a 3-year-old lion tamer? Check this girl out: Sofia of New Zealand was at the Wellington Zoo when she came across Malik, the "stroppy" lion. Stroppy means annoyed, and that's clearly how Malik seemed to feel when Sofia interrupted his breakfast. Her family filmed the lion rearing up at the girl, pouncing on the glass between them with his massive paws.
But Sofia doesn't even flinch! She just stares back at the lion and muses, "What's he telling me?" What's he telling you?!? You're dessert for his breakfast! Okay, she flinches the 2nd time the lion attacks, but man, that's a girl with nerves. Watch out for this one -- she's not afraid of anything!
I love how Sofie reacts to a threatening lion with curiosity instead of fear! Sure, she's probably already familiar with the lion. She and her brother are regulars at the zoo, visiting at least once a month. But her father points out, "She's always had this quiet confidence with animals, but she's certainly more confident with a lion than I would be, that's for sure." Meanwhile, the lion paws away at the window like Max in Where The Wild Things Are: "I'll eat you up!"
Sofie should be an inspiration for parents of girls everywhere. There's an element here to what I'd like to see in all girls growing up right now -- that fearlessness mixed with inquisitiveness. I can see Sofie growing up to be a biologist searching for poisonous snakes in the Amazon, or an investigative journalist, asking dangerous questions! Watch out world, Sofie is fierce.
See this video on The Stir by CafeMom.
what a brave girl
Image via YouTube