In front of a crowd of 20,000 people mourning Kobe Bryant , WNBA player Diana Taurasi recalled watching the NBA legend play at The Forum and how he made this little girl believe she could be a Laker one day. Beyonc gave a soul-stirring performance of XO and Halo; Michael Jordan, through tears, remembered the little brother who texted him at 2 a.m. to ask for coaching advice. Vanessa Bryant, Kobes wife and mother of their four children, eulogized her husband and daughter , Gianna, in a heartwarming 20-minute speech.

These moments will forever be etched in our minds after the celebration of life for Bryant and Gianna at Los Angeles Staples Center on Monday. Public memorials like these often called homegoings in the Black community are traditionally marked by emotional remarks and heartrending songs. To honor a celebritys life, homegoing services are comforting to those of us who struggle to express why the death of a luminary, who is so often a virtual stranger, affects our lives so deeply.