That man used to visit the zoo every week. Before the accident, he had worked there as a caretaker: he knew every animal, fed them with his own hands, and spoke to them like old friends. Somehow, they always responded.

Now retired, he still returned every Saturday. He would stop in front of the enclosures, watch the animals play, eat, or sleep, and feel like he still belonged to that place.

That day, everything seemed the same… until it wasn’t. The man was watching the gorillas when one of the females approached him, stared directly into his eyes, and suddenly grabbed the handles of his wheelchair.

With astonishing strength, she pulled him inside. Visitors screamed, staff ran to help, but it was impossible to resist her power. In an instant, the man was already inside the enclosure.

“Quick! Get him out of there!” shouted a guard. The crowd held its breath. The elderly man didn’t move, knowing how unpredictable those animals could be. He closed his eyes, convinced the end was near.

Then something incredible happened. The gorilla approached him, looked at him gently, wrapped her arms around him, and began rocking him softly… as if cradling a child.

The zookeepers froze. No one dared to speak. Until a trembling voice broke the silence:
“She remembers him.”

The gorilla carefully placed the man back in his wheelchair and pushed him gently toward the barrier. The staff rushed in and helped him out. The elderly man was crying—but not out of fear.

Because she recognized him. It was the same gorilla he had saved from death many years ago. And that embrace was her way of saying: “I haven’t forgotten you.”