The Boxer
Krikor Der Hohannesian
When you step over the ropes, old hands
say you should be prepared to die.
A lifetime spent coming
to that moment…
jabbing,
bobbing,
weaving,
feinting,
clinching,
rope-a-dope in a pinch
absorbing all the blows,
the pretense that they never hurt,
eyes glaring the lie—
“Is that all you got?” with
arms flopped at your sides,
a heart about to burst, stomach
knotted in fear, legs that
want to turn traitor. Yet
you wobble on. Corner men
splash water on your face,
styptic and vaseline for the gashes,
a snort of ammonia, catch
your breath and out you go.
For, once down,
a count of ten
is all you get,
a blurry glimpse
into the fleeting void.
Krikor Der Hohannesian’s poems have appeared in over 275 literary journals including The South Carolina Review, Atlanta Review, Louisiana Literature, Connecticut Review, Comstock Review and Natural Bridge. He is a five-time Pushcart Prize nominee and author of three books, Ghosts and Whispers (Finishing Line Press, 2010), Refuge in the Shadows (Cervena Barva Press, 2013) and First Generation (Dos Madres Press, 2020). Ghosts and Whispers was a finalist for the Mass Book awards poetry category in 2011. First Generation was selected as a “must read” by Mass Book Awards in 2021.