When The Fight Is Over Poem by Randy McClave

I got knocked down a couple of times
All because of boxing and not from crimes,
I also got hit many times in the face
My very own blood I then could taste,
But, when the bell did ring and my fighting was done
Many times the battle I had won,
When the fights was over I never once did remember the pain
But, I was triumphant and happy once again.

Sometimes when I fought I was knocked down or decisioned for a loss
Those fighters showed me that night they were the boss,
I have been cut and bloodied inside the ring
While lasting and praying and waiting for the final bell to ding,
After all of my fights they all had one thing in common
I had survived which was a true phenomenon,
I had forgotten all about my weak knee
Or the cuts or the blood in my eyes that hampered me to see.

When the fighting was over I was always relieved
The fight was always won by the better man I honestly believed,
And the punishment they received and the punishment I got
Was all from a well endured match that I had fought,
If it wasn't for my family or my friends remembering my fight
They all would had been erased from my thoughts and sight,
This I now say and believe with honor and truthfulness and pride
Don't ever let the pain and disappointment lodge inside.

Randy L. McClave