Bindi Irwin: "Everything that I do in life is to make him proud."

“It’s okay to feel that emotion but what’s important is picking yourself up afterwards.”

Appearing on the Today Show this morning, Bindi Irwin gave an exclusive interview with Lisa Wilkinson about what it has been like appearing on the US version of Dancing with the Stars, her boyfriend Chandler and growing up without her dad, Steve.

Bindi, who was accompanied by her mother Terri and brother Robert, also spoke about how grief has struck the family at different times. But with the support of her family, she has gotten through.

Here’s what she had to say:

On what it has been like performing on Dancing with the Stars…

“It’s terrifying, I mean it is so so scary.

“I remember the first day I walked in and just… It’s like jumping off a cliff you… have no idea what to expect and you have to hope there is a net at the bottom to catch you”

Watch Bindi do the Dirty Dancing lift here:

On making Steve a part of her dance routines….

“My absolute favourite performance was ‘The most memorable year’ which was the dance I did for my dad.

“That night was special just because it was tough — I mean it wasn’t easy at all, but it meant so much for me and I think to all of us [Terri and Robert] because it was for dad”

Watch the dance here:

On grief…

“I think I knew that it was coming… because for the whole week it was really tough.

“I was just kind of reaching a place that… I haven’t even thought about… you kind of just push things aside but I think what was great is that I was able to just pour light in on that spot and really let all that emotion out and share it with everyone else.

“Because it is okay to take that grief journey and it’s okay to feel that emotion but what’s important is picking yourself up afterwards… and remembering you can be happy afterwards.”

On her boyfriend Chandler…

I can’t wait to have you back in The City Of Angels with me. #HappinessLooksLikeThis

A photo posted by Bindi Irwin (@bindisueirwin) on Oct 14, 2015 at 4:59pm PDT

“He wake boards a lot… so maybe at the end of the year I can [bring him back to Australia].

“He’s a wonderful wonderful guy, and I’m so blessed. I don’t know how I got so lucky — he’s just a kind human being.”

On Australia…

“I’d love to work more over here [in America] but home will always be Australia no matter what… home will always always be Australia.

“It’s where my heart is.”  

A photo posted by Bindi Irwin (@bindisueirwin) on Oct 5, 2015 at 8:43pm PDT

On Steve…

“I hope he would be proud… I really really do. Everything that I do in life is to make him proud and to make sure everything he worked so hard for carries on.”

As for Bindi’s mother Terri, she’s pretty proud:

“I think one of the reasons I am so proud of Bindi is watching my kids do something well… that I know that I could never do.”

“[It was] really difficult and I remember Bindi saying to me, ‘Okay you’ve gotta be strong’ because I am not. And I thought ‘Oh great’. Because I can be addressing a classroom full of biologists and burst into tears at the drop of a hat.

“And I think we all experience that when we love someone and we lose them. That grief can sometimes side swipe you.”

For more photos of Bindi, click through the gallery below: