Dear Nike Basketball
Dear Nike Basketball,
Thank you!
Dear Nike Basketball,
This unexpected surprise made a tough year a little bit better, thank you.
I included the Kobe 5 protro “Chaos” because it was the last protro I was able to score on nike before the tragic passing of one of my all time heroes. Also, to symbolize how the year started and how its closing out. 2020 was a year that was filled with losses. I personally lost a good friend on January 1st due to a brain aneurysm, then the world went to shit after Kobe passed.
Worldwide shelter in place orders, temporary shut downs of businesses, no big social gatherings, etc... Its no wonder the world went to shit, or at least here in the United States it did. In the midst of all of this I tried my best to stay positive and find some kind of silver lining. Did I find it? Maybe. That silver lining, for me, was to reflect back on my time and my relationships and be grateful that the worst thing to happen, happened in the beginning of the year. I have my family, my friends, my job, my health, and my memories.
As a fan of Kobe and like many fans of kobe, we try to collect what we can that is Kobe. Especially his shoes, it’s that “Like Mike” effect. When you wear his shoes on court, you almost feel like you can hit the game winning jumper or harness his mamba mentality to go that extra mile/minute/rep. We were and are going to keep buying, or rather attempt to keep buying the shoes, because its one of the closest things to meeting kobe or the closest to feel what he felt every time he stepped on the hardwood. I know buying sneakers or collecting sneakers is part of the beast that captialism created, but Ive also met some really good people through sneaker culture and for that I’m grateful. This year since Kobe’s tragic death it’s been impossible to buy his sneakers, almost to the point where every release ended up being a meme.
So why me? Why was I, a virtual nobody in the sneaker culture, gifted a pair? My answer: I honest to God do not know. I was floored when I opned up the package to see his logo on the box, and in the box aside from the shoes was a personalized card from Nike Basketball. No words could describe the emotions that ran through me and I kept asking myself, Why me?. What I do know is that im extremely thankful and humbled by this. So to whoever saw my MANY social media posts dedicated to Kobe, thank you so much!
While this year was filled with losses and changes there were some personal wins. I got a new job thats going to challenge me, my wife and I became homeowners, im more clear about what I want to do with my photography, and one of my favorite companies gifted me a pair of Kobe’s signature shoes for Christmas. I hope everyone had a Merry and safe Christmas and with the new year just around the corner, I just know that there is hope.
Sincerely,
Raf Miranda
Mamba Forever.
not only did Nike reply to my tweet, they quoted my Son! such a trip.
