Erika Kirk explained why simply getting "through the next 15 minutes" has been a critical step in getting through the first year since the tragic assassination of her husband Charlie Kirk.Kirk, who took over leadership of Turning Point USA (TPUSA) following the fatal shooting of her 31-year-old husband at Utah Valley University on Sept.10, 2025, penned a New York Times guest essay headlined, "What I’ve learned about grief," that was published on Monday.Kirk said the first 24 hours after her husband was assassinated felt "like a fever dream," and she told Second Lady Usha Vance that she didn’t know how she would move forward.
The wife of Vice President JD Vance then offered words that are now "seared into" Kirk’s heart.JD VANCE'S WIFE USHA DETAILS HOW CHARLIE KIRK'S DEATH INFLUENCED DECISION TO HAVE FOURTH CHILDErika Kirk penned a New York Times guest essay about grief as the one-year anniversary of the tragic assassination of her husband approaches. (Dimitrios Kambouris/Getty Images)"You know when you’re on an airplane with your kids, and you’re going to land in 15 minutes, but the kids are going crazy, screaming, throwing things, and then the plane lands, and the kids relax, and everything is fine again? That’s how it will be.
Just get through the next 15 minutes," Vance told Kirk, according to Kirk’s guest essay.Kirk explained that things like seeing his toothbrush and towel in their shared bathroom were tough, but she constantly thought of Vance’s advice."I stood in the doorway of our bedroom.I turned on the light and walked toward his side of the bed.
I stared at his pillow and wondered how long a person’s scent can last in sheets.I stood there in silence, replaying all of the completely ordinary mornings we woke up there together.
I wasn’t ready to be there, so I turned off the light and crawled into bed with my 3-year-old daughter.Just get through the next 15 minutes," Kirk wrote."For months, I avoided my bedroom.
I told myself it wa...