The Fallen Titan
Its been almost two months since Kobe Bryant passed, in a helicopter crash on January 26, 2020, and I feel ready to commit to paper (or digital medium) how I felt.
Long story short, it hurt. It took awhile for the shock to wear off, and a few times, I felt like crying, but no tears would come. But after some time, reality began to set in. The day after it happened, I awoke to find a world that was no better than the day before.
I admired him for so long.
It seemed as if he would live forever. He accomplished a great deal and was destined for even more. He almost seemed immortal.
But no man is immortal, in the real sense. Memento mori.
I recently watched Stephon Marbury talk about Kobe, and he said he saw that Kobe Bryant was becoming a spirit on this Earth.
He truly was. He embodied the spirit of the game. Pure competition, self-improvement, directed aggressiveness, focus and relentlessness toward reaching a goal.
Thats who he was. He reached a point where he was bigger than the game, though he was manifesting through the game.
In his post-basketball playing days, he was content with mentoring young players, story-telling, with teaching the game around the world and to his young girl's team. There are so many who were inspired, directly and indirectly, by his wisdom. Not only with basketball, but life in general.
Some of my favorite moments would be, in no order:
a) When he scored 81. I watched the game a few times, and to this I still had no idea how it happened. He scored 57 points in the second half, and the Los Angeles Lakers, who didn't have the best players at that time, needed every point.
b) When he won his first ring without Shaq. It was June 2009 and they had just beaten the Orlando Magic in five games. After it happened I went out and got drunk. It was such a great feeling, and day to see him win after everyone said he couldn't. I felt euphoria on that day and I was only a viewer. Can't imagine how sweet it was for him.
c) The 2008 Olympics where he took over in the final moments against Spain to win the gold medal for Team USA. He was doing it all; scoring, defending and assisting.
He meant everything to many people across the world. The 24 second shot-clock violations, and 8 second violations taken on the day of his passing showed that. I read another article in which a JUCO player scored 81 points to honor Kobe.
I would be remiss in not mentioning his daughter's passing, whom he was grooming to be a great player in her own right, and the lives of the rest of the passengers aboard the helicopter. Their families will also never be the same.
Rest in peace Kobe, you lived a great life. A life of high speed.
Kobe will remain immortal.
Long story short, it hurt. It took awhile for the shock to wear off, and a few times, I felt like crying, but no tears would come. But after some time, reality began to set in. The day after it happened, I awoke to find a world that was no better than the day before.
I admired him for so long.
It seemed as if he would live forever. He accomplished a great deal and was destined for even more. He almost seemed immortal.
But no man is immortal, in the real sense. Memento mori.
I recently watched Stephon Marbury talk about Kobe, and he said he saw that Kobe Bryant was becoming a spirit on this Earth.
He truly was. He embodied the spirit of the game. Pure competition, self-improvement, directed aggressiveness, focus and relentlessness toward reaching a goal.
Thats who he was. He reached a point where he was bigger than the game, though he was manifesting through the game.
In his post-basketball playing days, he was content with mentoring young players, story-telling, with teaching the game around the world and to his young girl's team. There are so many who were inspired, directly and indirectly, by his wisdom. Not only with basketball, but life in general.
Some of my favorite moments would be, in no order:
a) When he scored 81. I watched the game a few times, and to this I still had no idea how it happened. He scored 57 points in the second half, and the Los Angeles Lakers, who didn't have the best players at that time, needed every point.
b) When he won his first ring without Shaq. It was June 2009 and they had just beaten the Orlando Magic in five games. After it happened I went out and got drunk. It was such a great feeling, and day to see him win after everyone said he couldn't. I felt euphoria on that day and I was only a viewer. Can't imagine how sweet it was for him.
c) The 2008 Olympics where he took over in the final moments against Spain to win the gold medal for Team USA. He was doing it all; scoring, defending and assisting.
He meant everything to many people across the world. The 24 second shot-clock violations, and 8 second violations taken on the day of his passing showed that. I read another article in which a JUCO player scored 81 points to honor Kobe.
I would be remiss in not mentioning his daughter's passing, whom he was grooming to be a great player in her own right, and the lives of the rest of the passengers aboard the helicopter. Their families will also never be the same.
Rest in peace Kobe, you lived a great life. A life of high speed.
Kobe will remain immortal.
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