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Meerkat madness transforms Taiwanese ex-multimillionaire’s life

• Publication Date：09/19/2011
• Source： Liberty Times

Meerkat madness is credited by a Taiwanese ex-multimillionaire as the driving force behind her new career as a wildlife photographer and author of children’s books.

Wen Fang-lin, 42, said she fell in love with the mongoose-like mammal that stands 30-centimeters tall and lives in the Kalahari Desert during the lowest point of her life.

“My business was failing and I contracted a serious illness, but the meerkat’s selfless existence was a constant source of inspiration,” Wen said.

Earlier this year, Wen and a professional photographer set off for the Kalahari Desert to capture the animal’s life on film. The result was over 10,000 shots that have been released online and are soon to feature in a book commissioned by an overseas publishing house.

To enable more people to learn about meerkats, Wen said she is writing a children's story about BJ, one of the animals that visited her during the trip. Titled "Meerkat BJ’s Life and Death Struggle,” the book will also serve as teaching material during her community work visits to youth detention centers.

“I hope my efforts will help more people get to know and cherish an animal that is so like humans in all the good ways,” Wen said. (JSM)

(This story appeared Sept. 18 in The Liberty Times.)