BY NOW MOST OF THE WORLD IS AWARE OF THE UNFORTUNATE DEATH OF KOBE BRYANT AND HIS DAUGHTER ALONG WITH 7 OTHER PEOPLE ON SUNDAY JANUARY 26TH, 2020.
NOT ONLY IS IT TRAGIC BUT IT LEAVES US WITH NO PROPER CONSOLEMENT. MANY HAVE ATTEMPTED ON FACEBOOK OR TWITTER. BUT IT JUST COULDN’T FILL THE VOID. THEN I STARTED THINKING ABOUT HIS NAME—KOBE! BEING AN ORTHODOX JEWISH MAN, I HAD ALREADY KNOWN IT TO BE SHORT FOR JACOB ( YAAKOV OUR FOREFATHER), AND I ALSO REMEMBER KOBE BRYANT SAYING IT MEANT WARRIOR. THEN I CHECKED ONLINE AND SAW THAT THE MEANING FOR KOBE IN SWAHILI IS TORTOISE. I PONDERED A WHILE TO SEE WHAT THE CONNECTION WAS BETWEEN THOSE DEFINITIONS AND ONE OF THE GREATEST NBA BASKETBALL PLAYERS OF ALL TIME.
AND THEN IT HIT ME.
THOSE THREE INTERPRETATIONS DEFINED KOBE ON THE BASKETBALL COURT AND IN LIFE. YOU MIGHT WONDER HOW THE TORTOISE COMES INTO PLAY. IF YOU LOOK AT KOBE BRYANT’S CAREER AS AN NBA PRO, HE STARTED OUT AS A YOUNG WARRIOR THAT HAD TO CONNECT WITH OLDER PLAYERS IN THE NBA. HE WAS BARELY 18 YEARS OLD WHEN HE STARTED AND AS HIS FORMER TEAMMATE, BRIAN SHAW STATED, BECAUSE OF THE AGE GAP, MANY OF THE THINGS THAT THE OLDER PLAYERS WANTED TO DO, KOBE COULD NOT PARTICIPATE IN. BUT JUST LIKE JACOB/YAAKOV, HIM BEING AWAY FROM SOCIETY’S NORMS PROPELLED HIM TO BEING THE MOST DEVOTEDAND FOCUSSED NBA PLAYER THAT WE HAVE SEEN IN TODAY’S NBA. BUT BECAUSE HE WAS THAT YOUNG HE ALSO LIVED IN HIS OWN SHELL JUST LIKE THE TORTOISE.
THAT DISTANCE COULD HAVE NEGATIVELY AFFECTED OTHER PEOPLE WHO LOOK TO FIT IN AND CONNECT WITH OTHERS. BUT NOT KOBE. HE WAS A DIFFERENT THINKER. HE EMBRACE THAT SEPARATION BY HONING HIS SKILLS AND FOCUS FOR THE GAME OF BASKETBALL.
HE BROUGHT THAT FIRE AND CONCENTRATION TO EVERYTHING HE PURSUED INCLUDING BEING A WRITER AND WINNING AN OSCAR. HE USED THAT ABILITY TO FOCUS ON BEING A BETTER HUSBAND, A GREAT FATHER, AN OUTSIDE THINKER AND UNDERSTANDING THAT MAKING MISTAKES IS APART OF LIFE. BUT IT’S HOW WE HANDLE THOSE MISTAKES THAT DEFINE US.
SO I TAKE FROM THIS TRAGEDY, A HOPEFUL MESSAGE TO EVERYONE OUT THERE, THAT LIFE IS PRECIOUS AND FRAGILE AS YOU KNOW. AND IF KOBE BRYANT’S DEATH IS CONSISTENTLY GNAWING AT YOUR SOUL, THEN THINK ABOUT KOBE BRYANT’S LIFE AND MESSAGE ABOUT LIFE’S PURSUITS. REMEMBER HOW HE USED TO WAKE UP EVERY MORNING AT 5-5:30AM AND EMBRACE THE DAY WITH LOVE DEDICATION, COMMITMENT, PASSION AND THE PURSUIT OF BEING BETTER EVERYDAY. OUR HEARTS GO OUT TO VANESSA BRYANT, KOBE’S WIFE AND THEIR DAUGHTERS FOR THE LOSS OF A GREAT MAN AND HIS DAUGHTER GIANNA, ALONG WITH THE ALTOBELLI , THE CHESTER FAMILY, MAUSER FAMILY, AND THE ZOBAYAN FAMILY WHO LOST PARENTS, SPOUSES AND SIBLINGS.
MAY ALL OF THOSE VICTIMS REST IN PEACE AND MY CONDOLENCES TO THEIR SURVIVING FAMILIES.
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