it is always sad and demoralizing when a society loses a hero, especially when they are young and it is unexpected. Such was the worldwide grief when we lost Princess Diana, and again this week as we lose Kobe Bryant. In this case its even worse because his eldest daughter also died in the helicopter crash.
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| Courtesy: NYDaily News |
When one first hears of such a tragic death, we immediately begin to think back upon the life lived. As with most public figures, there is an overwhelming amount of data to sift through, in our brains, in newsrooms and certainly among social media, not to mention personal memories. I am a Knicks fan, so i do remember when he scored 61 points at Madison Square Garden, as do millions of Knicks fans across the greater New York area.
But this is being selfish, its not just about me or the Knicks, Kobe's impact extends across so many of society's leagues, Basketball, sports, business, media, journalism, philosophy, motivation, inspiration, education, self-fulfillment, success strategies, Parenthood, leadership. One can speak or write volumes about each of these when eulogizing Kobe, However, no one person can Eulogize Kobe, they would have to speak for 6 hours, so it would take a small army to do this effectively, each person covering a different theme.
in the case of Kobe, such a superbrain he was, each individual Eulogy itself must be addressed by a team aiding each speaker. Some of the main highlights;
He worked harder and smarter than his contemporaries
many times he took the road less traveled
he always seemed to be smart and smarter than those around him
he was exceptional at everything
he inspired many others to greater achievement
he was a magnet for love
Often spoken of as the greatest of all time (Goat), he was compared with the likes of Bill Russel, Wilt Chamberlain, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, micheal jordan, and Larry Bird, he was youngest of them all and survived by them all. No one could agree on who is the goat, however everyone will agree that Kobe deserves to be on that list.
This reminds of the last hero we had difficulty Eulogizing,Senator John McCain, It took many people and many hours, yes, this is the requirement for those left behind. This time however, I expect it would be a double funeral, burying his daughter alongside him, and compounding sadness for all involved.
Gandhi said, "man lives freely only by his readiness to die", I have no doubt Kobe lived freely, I also suppose he was nowhere ready to die nor did he prepare for death. Are you ready?
