Greatness, we all strive for it. Yet we usually only arrive to the destination in our thoughts and dreams. We never take the first step of sacrifice. We never truly dedicate ourselves to our craft and make the sacrifices to become legends, to be remembered forever. Only the elite, those born with a different mentality, cut from a different cloth, and with an immunity to pain to make the sacrifice to become legends.
Yesterday the world mourned and today the world continues to mourn the loss of a legend. Kobe Bean Bryant. Only 41. Yet in a short time here on earth he wasn’t given the title of legend but instead he earned it. Earning the respect of friends and foes alike. He didn’t do it for the fame or for the glory, he did it for the love of the game, for basketball.
After 41 years on this earth Kobe was a shooting star across the sky. A person that despite his amazing career on the court was barely starting to enjoy life off the court after years of sacrificing time and family. After year of seeing Kobe work tirelessly and solely on basketball, we started to see Kobe in a different light. We saw Kobe win an Oscar, play with Muppets, and make podcasts for kids.
Kobe also became a wonderful husband to his wife Vanessa and an excellent father to his 4 daughters. Yesterday while taking his daughter Gianna to a basketball game, the helicopter they were flying in crashed. Ending the life of Kobe Bryant and his daughter Gianna Bryant. Kobe Bryant with all the fame in the world could have been making movies, shooting tv shows, or telling his butler to take Gianna to the game but instead decided to be like an other parent and take his daughter to her basketball game. Yet, if Kobe was still here, he wouldn’t want us to remember him, but instead his daughter. The twinkle in his eyes, that made him love basketball again and worked just as hard as he did to achieve her dreams, to play in the WNBA by fully immersing herself in the game of basketball. While also inspiring thousands of young girls to follow their dreams.
This is our final goodbye to Kobe. Thank-you Kobe for all the memories that you gave to us. Thank-you for making us fall in love with the game of basketball. Thank-you for being there for us when no one else was. Thank-you for showing that passion and dedication can take you to the highest mountain tops and weather the lowest valleys.
Kobe strived for greatness. Kobe envisioned it in his thoughts and dreams. Kobe took the first step of sacrifice. Kobe truly dedicated himself to his craft and made the sacrifices to become a legend, to be remembered forever. Kobe was elite, Kobe was born with a different mentality, cut from a different cloth, with an immunity to pain to make the scarifies to become a legend.
To the other 7 people in the helicopter crash, we miss you. To Gigi Bryant we miss you. To Kobe Bean Bryant we miss you. Thank you for all the memories legend, rest in paradise.
Reporter Luis Rubio
