Vanessa Bryant "spent a lot of time" on the speech she delivered at Kobe and Gianna Bryant's public memorial on Monday (24.02.20).
Vanessa Bryant's Instagram post of Kobe and their family
The 37-year-old beauty took to the stage at the Staples Centre in Los Angeles to give a lengthy and emotional speech in honour of her late husband and their 13-year-old daughter, after they were among the nine people who lost their lives in a helicopter crash last month.
And it has now been claimed working on her speech took Vanessa "everything she had".
An insider told People magazine: "She spent a lot of time on that, to say the exact right thing. It took everything she had. She's exhausted but she knows that after [Monday] she can rest."
Vanessa's message saw her dedicate the first part to her late daughter, whom she described as "an amazingly sweet and gentle soul".
She said: "First I'd like to thank everyone for coming today. The outpouring of love and support that my family has felt from around the world has been so uplifting. Thank you so much for all your prayers. I'd like to talk about both Kobe and Gigi. I'll start with my baby girl Gianna Bryant, an amazingly sweet and gentle soul.
"She was always thoughtful. Her smile was like sunshine. Her smile took up her entire face, like mine. Kobe always said she was me. She had my fire, my personality, and sarcasm. She was tender and loving on the she had the best laugh. It was infectious. It was pure and genuine."
The beauty then spoke about the late NBA legend, and teared up as she described their romance, which began when she was a teenager.
Vanessa added: "He was mine. He was my everything. Kobe and I had been together since I was 17.5 years old. I was his first girlfriend, his first love, his wife, his best friend, his confidante and his protector. He was the most amazing husband. Kobe loved me more than I could ever express or put into words. He was the early bird and I was the night owl. I was fire and he was ice, and vice versa at times. We balanced each other out. He would do anything for me. I have no idea how I deserved a man that loved and wanted me more than Kobe. He was charismatic, a gentleman. He was loving, adoring and romantic. He was truly the romantic one in our relationship."
Vanessa also reflected on the devastating impact Kobe and Gianna's deaths have had on her other children - 17-year-old Natalia, three-year-old Bianka, and eight-month-old Capri - as she vowed to make sure they remember the "amazing person, husband and father" Kobe was.
And she concluded her speech by saying: "God knew they couldn't be on this Earth without each other. He had to bring them home to have them together. Babe, you take care of our Gigi. I got Nata, Bebe and KoKo. We love and miss you, boo and Gigi. May you both rest in peace, have fun in heaven until we meet again one day. We love you both and miss you forever and always. Mommy."
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