On the 30 year anniversary of Kurt Cobain's tragic death, the Nirvana frontman's daughter, Frances Bean Cobain, has shared a heartbreaking tribute to her father - including their last photo together.
The 31-year-old daughter of Kurt and then-wife Courtney Love took to Instagram to remember her father, sharing a number of photos of the singer including photos of his hands, and of him as a child with his mom.
Two photos saw Kurt with his daughter - then a baby - as he kissed her on the head in one snap, and lifted her upside down in another - classic photos showing a father's love for his child in a blissful moment.
Frances shared an incredibly rare insight into the grief she's felt growing up without her dad - which certainly struck a chord not only with her followers, but other famous individuals.
© @thespacewitch"30 years ago my dad’s life ended", she wrote. "The 2nd & 3rd photo capture the last time we were together while he was still alive. His mom Wendy would often press my hands to her cheeks & say, with a lulling sadness, “you have his hands”. She would breathe them in as if it were her only chance to hold him just a little bit closer, frozen in time. I hope she’s holding his hands wherever they are."
She continued: "In the last 30 years my ideas around loss have been in a continuous state of metamorphosing. The biggest lesson learned through grieving for almost as long as I’ve been conscious, is that it serves a purpose.
"The duality of life & death, pain & joy, yin & yang, need to exist along side each other or none of this would have any meaning. It is the impermanent nature of human existence which throws us into the depths of our most authentic lives. As It turns out, there is no greater motivation for leaning into loving awareness than knowing everything ends."
© @thespacewitch"I wish I could’ve known my Dad", she confessed. "I wish I knew the cadence of his voice, how he liked his coffee or the way it felt to be tucked in after a bedtime story. I always wondered if he would’ve caught tadpoles with me during the muggy Washington summers, or if he smelled of Camel Lights & strawberry nesquik (his favorites, I’ve been told)."
She added: "But there is also deep wisdom being on an expedited path to understanding how precious life is. He gifted me a lesson in death that can only come through the LIVED experience of losing someone.
"It’s the gift of knowing for certain, when we love ourselves & those around us with compassion, with openness, with grace, the more meaningful our time here inherently becomes."
© Jamie McCarthyAccording to Frances, Kurt wrote her a letter before she was born. The last line of it reads:
"wherever you go or wherever I go, I will always be with you."
She said of this: "He kept this promise because he is present in so many ways. Whether it’s by hearing a song or through the hands we share, in those moments I get to spend a little time with my dad & he feels transcendent."
© Frazer HarrisonSigning off the emotional post, she shared: "To anyone who has wondered what it would’ve looked like to live along side the people they have lost, I’m holding you in my thoughts today. The meaning of our grief is the same".
Frances' raw emotions left fans, friends and fellow stars in awe of her words.
Model Karen Elson wrote: "This teared me up. Massive hugs to you always", while Frances' husband Riley Hawk, son of skateboarding pro Tony Hawk, added: "So proud of you".
Sonic Youth star Kim Gordon, a close friend of her father's, simply shared a number of black heart emojis, as did Paris Jackson - a fellow star who lost her famous father at a young age.
