Kobe Bryant
Dear Basketball,
From the moment
I started rolling my dad’s tube socks
And shooting imaginary
Game-winning shots
In the Great Western Forum
I knew one thing was real:
I fell in love with you.
A love so deep I gave you my all —
From my mind & body
To my spirit & soul.
As a six-year-old boy
Deeply in love with you
I never saw the end of the tunnel.
I only saw myself
Running out of one.
And so I ran.
I ran up and down every court
After every loose ball for you.
You asked for my hustle
I gave you my heart
Because it came with so much more.
I played through the sweat and hurt
Not because challenge called me
But because YOU called me.
I did everything for YOU
Because that’s what you do
When someone makes you feel as
Alive as you’ve made me feel.
You gave a six-year-old boy his Laker dream
And I’ll always love you for it.
But I can’t love you obsessively for much longer.
This season is all I have left to give.
My heart can take the pounding
My mind can handle the grind
But my body knows it’s time to say goodbye.
And that’s OK.
I’m ready to let you go.
I want you to know now
So we both can savor every moment we have left together.
The good and the bad.
We have given each other
All that we have.
And we both know, no matter what I do next
I’ll always be that kid
With the rolled up socks
Garbage can in the corner
:05 seconds on the clock
Ball in my hands.
5 … 4 … 3 … 2 … 1
Love you always,
Kobe
亲爱的篮球，
从小时候
我穿着老爸的直筒袜
假装着
我在大西部论坛球馆
投中制胜球的样子
我就清楚知道一件事情：
我爱上你了。
我爱你如此之深，已奉献我的所有—
从我的思想到我的身体
从我的精神到我的灵魂
六岁的我
深深的爱着你
我从没想过这段旅程结束时的样子
我只看到我自己
在这条路上奔跑
所以我不停的跑
每场比赛我都不停奔跑
为争取每一次得到你的机会
你需要我拼尽全力
我为你奉上了我的心
因为这需要的不仅仅是尽力。
我为打球流尽血汗、带着一身伤病
不是因为困难在挑战我
而是因为你在呼唤我
我已经为你做了一切
因为你也是这样对待我
因为你让我感觉
我自己是一个鲜活的人
你让一个6岁的孩子实现了他的湖人梦
为此我将永远爱你。
但是我不能再如此迷恋你了
这个赛季是我所能给的仅有的
我的心还能继续承受各种打击
我的意志也还能继续坚持下去
但我的身体让我知道是时候说再见了
这也很好
我已经做好准备跟你说再见了
我现在只是想让你知道
我们俩都可以永远珍藏着彼此一起度过的每一段时光
无论是好的，还是坏的
我们已经给了彼此
我们所能给的全部
我们俩都知道，接下来无论我去做什么
我都会是那个
穿着老爸的直筒袜
瞄准角落里的垃圾桶
假装进攻时间还有5秒
手里拿着篮球的小孩
5秒…4秒…3秒…2秒…1秒
一直爱你的，
科比
谢谢你，这二十年
再见了，我的青春
