#GirlDad

A LOVE Story about Kobe Bryant, Fathers and Daughters, and Girls Sports

My seventeen-year-old daughter, Amber and I were in the kitchen, still in our pajamas because it was Sunday morning and there was no rush for us to get anywhere. I was taking out an egg carton from the refrigerator when Molly, my fourteen-year-old daughter emerged from her bedroom holding her cell phone.

“Have you been on the internet?” Molly asked. Amber and I shook our heads no. “I don’t know if it’s true, but I think Kobe died in a helicopter accident,” Molly said. Amber and my eyes conveyed confusion, hoping Molly’s shocking declaration was fake news. I turned on the small TV that sat on the kitchen countertop and the newscaster confirmed the unthinkable tragedy.

“Does Dad know ?” I asked. The girls shrugged their shoulders, our collective hearts sinking because Kobe was Todd’s hero.

Seconds later Todd emerged from the office moving with a fast stride towards our bedroom. He was headed to New York for business and his flight took off from LAX in less than two hours. He still hadn’t packed, showered, or eaten breakfast yet. Todd’s momentum halted when he felt Molly, Amber, and my big eyes and serious expressions staring back at him.

The girls looked at me to speak. “Have you heard the news?” I asked, feeling a wave of nausea rising as reality took hold. Sadness began to emerge, like the tip of an iceberg with the weighted heaviness below the surface.

“No. What?” Todd asked.

The girls looked at me again to speak. “Kobe died in a helicopter crash.”

Todd stepped back and jutted his chin out, his eyes rounding in disbelief. He looked shocked, as though he’d just been sucker-punched in the gut out of nowhere.

Kobe made his NBA debut with the Lakers in 1996. It was the same year Todd picked me up for our first date with a Laker license plate cover. I’d soon learn of Todd’s unconditional purple and gold allegiance; a die-hard basketball and Laker fan since he was a young boy.