Do you take delight in watching films, listening to pop music, or reading books? For English learners, movies, songs, and books are one of the most wonderful sources to explore the language! You can indulge in your favorite pastime and still learn some expressions, words of wisdom, and oftentimes good lessons while you’re at it.
#106. A Gorilla Story: Told by David
Attenborough (documentary film, 2026)
An English natural
historian David Attenborough takes us almost 50 years back (in 1978) to his
first encounter with Pablo, a baby gorilla who grew into a powerful silverback
in the mountains of Rwanda. His story also follows Pablo’s legacy through the
generations of mountain gorillas, offering a moving glimpse into the lives of
his descendants.
“A
silverback is a fully mature, dominant adult male gorilla that leads and
protects the family group.”
ð A
silverback is more than the strongest male in the family. He is its compass and
guardian—leading the group through the forest, calming conflicts, and standing
between his family and dangerous encounters in the mountains. His strength is
not simply measured by his size, but by the lives he guides, protects, and
carries forward. In this documentary, there are a couple of main silverbacks in
the Pablo group that David met and studied: Gichuraci, Ubwuzu, Bethoven,
Imfura, and Pablo.
“Teta
(dominant female leader) must show the group who she supports. She leaves
Gichuraci and chooses younger male Ubwuzu. If Teta allows the incoming female
member like Inyange, the rest of the group welcomes her.”
ð
In
the quiet world of a gorilla family, power is not always won through strength.
Sometimes, it is earned through trust, respect, and the subtle bonds that hold
a community together. Teta, a calm and influential female plays the role of the
group’s matriarch who becomes a quiet force in the group as its leadership
begins to change. By shifting her support toward the young male Ubwuzu, she
helps the family accept him as its new leader.
Also, when Inyange (another female newcomer) arrives as a stranger, Teta’s acceptance becomes a bridge between the newcomer and the group. One by one, the others follow her lead.
“When
Pablo turned 18, he showed unconventional move as a leader when he was
challenged by rival silverbacks. He took the opportunity to form a powerful
alliance with them instead of fighting. By replacing aggression with
cooperation between them, they became the biggest group of mountain gorillas
ever known.”
ð Pablo’s rise to leadership tells a different story about power. When he reached maturity, he did not fight his rivals for control. Instead, he chose cooperation, forming an unlikely alliance with other silverbacks. Together, they built a remarkable community—the largest group of mountain gorillas ever recorded. Pablo’s story quietly challenges the old image of the aggressive “King Kong” and reveals something far more profound: true strength may not lie in defeating others, but in knowing how to live and thrive together.
“The relationship
between humans and gorillas has always been a difficult one. Poaching had
pushed the gorilla population to the brink of extinction. There were only
around 250 gorillas left in the Virunga Mountains. There might not be any
mountain gorillas at all, had it not been for Diane Fossey. She dedicated her
life to protecting gorillas by whatever means possible.”
ð As forests disappeared and poaching threatened their survival, these remarkable mountain gorillas were pushed to the edge of extinction. At one point, only around 250 remained in the Virunga Mountains. But their story did not end there. Dian Fossey’s fierce dedication to protecting them helped give the species a second chance. Her work reminds us that even when human actions bring a species to the brink, courage and compassion can eventually help turn the course of its future.
** Jean’s Small Thoughts:
I found this
intimate, up-close documentary about mountain gorillas deeply moving—a haunting
reminder of what we can learn from the natural world about how to live, belong,
and endure. Although violence is sometimes part of their lives, especially
among the adult silverbacks, their story reveals something more profound:
family is never perfect, yet it can be the essential force that keeps us
together through difficult times.
Watching
them, I was reminded that belonging is sometimes granted not by power, but by
the simple act of being welcomed.
Here, I’m
sharing a short poem I wrote about the Pablo family mountain in this
documentary.
The
Life of the Mountain Gorilla Family
by Jean J. Lee
12,000 feet above the Virunga Mountains,
The Pablo group of gorillas wake up in
their kingdom.
Moms like Teta and dads like Gichuraci
are their captains.
From dawn to dusk, baby gorillas are
growing and shaped by their wisdom.
Bold and curious, Ubi and Pablo hung
around together.
Imfura was old and weak, but he was
playful and young at heart.
When Imfura was hurt by another
silverback Ubwuzu, he became under the weather.
He didn’t have the power that makes
him outsmart.
Ubwuzu mated with Inyange and had a
charming boy.
When Ubwuzu was distracted by other
females who wanted his attention,
He could not watch over his family due
to the other females’ gestures so coy.
He despaired to find out about his boy’s
death while he lost his tension.
It was Imfura that killed Ubwuzu’s boy
to avenge.
Ubwuzu and Inyange chased Imfura out
of their group.
But they knew there would be no such
thing as revenge.
Imfura must have missed the time when
he was in the loop.
Strangers could become a family
as long as they keep compassion
towards one another.
Battles in competition could not take
place necessarily
just as Pablo embraced the other
silverbacks all together.
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