(FOX NEWS INSIDER) - Famed wildlife expert and TV personality Steve Irwin wrote a letter to his parents that has just now become public, just days before the 10th anniversary of his death.
Irwin's father, Bob, reportedly stumbled upon the lost note while working on a soon-to-be-released memoir, "The Last Crocodile Hunter."
In the emotional letter, unopened until recently, Irwin told Bob and his mother, Lyn, that he was just beginning to realize his parents' importance.
"At 32, I am finally starting to figure it out. In good times and in bad, you were there. Your strength and endurance to raise me will not go unrewarded. My love for you is my strength!" he wrote.
He lamented that it was unfortunate in a "Bloke's Life" that it took 30 years to realize "how essential" his parents were "to build my character, my ethics and, most importantly, my HAPPINESS."
Irwin concluded the letter by calling his parents his "best friends!"
Read more at FOX News Insider.