Go Pacquiao!

Go Pacquiao!

I sat there intently, waiting for the fight to begin. The announcers pulling information on whatever they could discuss to keep the momentum of the viewers going. Some conversation in the room were brewing about De La Hoya's age, his previous negotiating to sign Manny Pacquiao and other such commentaries. As the conversations filled the room and as the fights talks began, the moment the national anthems were sung is the moment I went back in time. I remembered my grandfather, the late Romeo Verdadero, a muscian from the Philippines. I starting having flash backs of my short time spent with him. He came to the United States when I was about 12 or 13. Needless to say he didn't stay for too long. From what I recall there was something about the way U.S. homes were fenced off from each other accompanied by feeling a scarcity of filipino people within our neighborhood community along with the climate factors that made him long to return home.
As the Philippine National Anthem was sung a piece of him came back to me. It was his memory of being a boxing fanatic and visuals of him flipping through the channels of our old tube television searching for boxing matches that came to mind. I could picture him throwing jabs and upper cuts as he would intently watch the fights on T.V. Although language was a definite barrier at the time I could still read his articulations and he loved boxing. He left some months after and returned to live his life in the Philippines where he passed in 2005.

Throughout the Pacquiao vs. De La Hoya fight, my grandfather's memory stayed in my mind which made me more intently follow the techniques of Pacquiao. It was great! Quick, precise and to the point. It was not surprising to see the results after the eighth round where judges deemed him winner via TKO, a term that never truly meant anything to me until today.

The beautiful piece about all of this is the fact that Pacquiao's reputation and ability has placed him now as true pound for pound best fighter of the world -a great place to be after years of hard work, dedication and love for his profession. Another beautiful piece was taking a wonderful trip down memory lane.

Go Pacquiao and maraming salamat po for the memories!!! Perhaps we will see you and Mayweather soon?