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Vanessa Bryant’s love for her husband will live on forever.
The 39-year-old paid tribute to her late husband, Kobe Bryant, on Valentine’s Day, posting a photo of them to Instagram and reminding the world that the Lakers legend is her “forever Valentine.”
“Happy Valentine’s Day, Baby,” she wrote in her caption. “My Forever Valentine. ❤️ #AmoreMio#TiAmo#PerSempre.”
This is just the third year that the mother of four has celebrated Valentine’s Day without her husband of nearly 20 years. In January 2020, Kobe and their 13-year-old daughter, Gianna Bryant, were in a helicopter crash that took their lives along with seven others.
Vanessa and Kobe got married in April 2001 and went on to welcome four daughters together: Natalia, 19, Bianka, 4, Capri, 2, and Gianna. Since the loss of the NBA legend and their daughter Gigi, Vanessa has done everything she can to keep their legacy alive.
In March 2021, about a year after the devastating accident, V opened up about life after loss in an interview with PEOPLE.
“I can’t say that I’m strong every day. I can’t say that there aren’t days when I feel like I can’t survive to the next,” V told the publication.
“I guess the best way to describe it is that Kobe and Gigi motivate me to keep going,” she explained at the time. “They inspire me to try harder and be better every day. Their love is unconditional and they motivate me in so many different ways.”
The mother of four went on to say that she’s motivated by her daughters, who inspire her to keep going.
“This pain is unimaginable [but] you just have to get up and push forward,” she admitted. “Lying in bed crying isn’t going to change the fact that my family will never be the same again. But getting out of bed and pushing forward is going to make the day better for my girls and for me. So that’s what I do.”
Happy Valentine’s Day to Vanessa and Kobe.