The armchair critics were out in full force today when an interview revealed that Vanessa Bryant expects her husband to win championships.
The excerpt (found HERE) found Mrs. Kobe Bryant saying that if her husband is taking time away from their family to train and play, then yes, his goal should be to win championships and that should be the expectation. While I think she could have found a more tactful way to say it, she’s not wrong. If Kobe is taking time from Vanessa and their two daughters to play, then yes, his expectation should be the best that he should be. This is not just about athletes. If you are leaving your family to go to work every day, go to school, etc. shouldn’t your goal be to be the best that you can be? Why go to work to do a half assed job?
However, what shocked me was the number of women who belittled Mrs. Bryant’s appearance, her role as stay-at-home mom to her children, and called her a gold digger. This surprised me as Vanessa filed for divorce last year and was about to be awarded a $150 million settlement but she chose to withdraw her application to work on her marriage, one that has seen infidelity, a bitter court case and lawsuit and her reported mental health issues. However, instead of commending the Bryants for at least trying to make their marriage work, he’s a pussy and she’s a gold digger.
I don’t know the Bryants or the ins and outs of their marriage, but they are trying to make it work and good for them. So many people fail to understand that relationships take time, patience, understanding, etc to make these things work. Some days you may not like each other, but if you’ve committed to someone (whether you’re legally wed or not) and you’re sharing your life with that person, you need to make the choice to make it work and kudos to this couple for continuing to try and make this union thrive. Maybe it will work, maybe it won’t, but no one can say that the effort wasn’t there.
So, if Mrs. Bryant chooses to motivate her husband by telling him that his goal should be to win since he’s sacrificed time with her and their daughters to get there, then why not? It works for them and they appear to be happy together. They’re trying to make it work and if this is what they do to make it work, then good for them. We all have to do what we must to make a relationship work. Sometimes we have to listen when we don’t want to because our partner REALLY likes to talk. Sometimes we have to be patient and understand that they need to be alone. Sometimes we need to accept flaws that we used to think were dealbreakers because we love the rest of that person. But the Bryants clearly expect the best out of each other at work and at home and it seems to work for them. Who are we to tell them that they’re wrong?
The Misadventures of MHC 