Big Bill Poem by Francis Duggan

Broad shouldered standing six foot two or three
Still Big Bill is not the man he used to be
And though only thirty on his last birthday
Ill health from him has sapped the strength away.

Five years ago he had the strength of two
'Twas said of him he was one of the few
Big chances for to win weight lifting gold
Till sickness left him looking weak and old.

At the Olympics he could not compete
He barely has the strength to lift his feet
This once giant of a man now looking pale
Illness has left him thin and weak and frail.

He was to be on the Olympic team
Till poor health brought an end to his great dream
The National weight lifting champion for glory he was bound
But now he struggles just to walk around.

Just thirty years his shoulders stooped from pain
He looks much older with his walking cane
A shadow of the man he used to be
A few years back none quite so strong as he.