kidney punch

Have you ever watched pro boxing and noticed that the little guys don't go for the knock out, they wait for the right opportunity to get in a good body shot. after a few shots to the gut or floating ribs the oponant is really in a dilemma. on one hand he can cover his head and keep taking the body shots (which really hurt, take away your breath and wear down your stamina) OR he can try to block the body punch and leave his head poorly guarded.

Back in High School, I used to defend my 270 pound youth leader in basketball. he was in his late 20s and really a pretty good athlete. Basketball wasn't his strong suite, but he had mastered the Carl Malone high knee drive to the basket. when he was coming down the lane nobody would meet him mono-y-mono, not even the 6'8" 315 pounder that went to play O-line at Auburn for 5 years. but at the block I had a bit of an edge on him with my vertical, not too often would I actually get to pack his stuff, but I made him rely on the spinning fade-away. well when it came to rebounds I took a lesson from the welter weight guys and found his kidney. I started off feeling him out trying to see if I could get a response, not really hitting him hard just well placed. then in the heat of the game I might forget that I loved him like a second father and let a quick jab fly a bit too hard.

He was much better than I would have been in his place, he would laugh it off, comment on how it was an effective strategy and then gently give me back a little of my own. he was not malicious, rather reminding me of what it was like to be on the other side of the fist. honestly he never got my kidney dead on but maybe a few times, and so this just made me feel like we had a rough and tough camaraderie and therefore license to keep on.

I didn't fully realize the jolt of pain a good kidney shot could give until recently. someone fell, they tried to catch themselves and brace for the fall all at once. I was at their rear and to the side. in the process of falling they raked their elbow down the righthand side of my back with initial impact from their flailing elbow just below the ribs and the final jolt when they stopped on my hip bone (only a 3" span). take a quick look at an anatomy book and you will see this was a direct hit on the old kidney and it ached for a while. I was not angry at them but did wish I had been elsewhere.

So as I stooped and wallowed in my temporal misery I flashed back to those nights when we played basketball after bible study and I landed jab upon jab on my youth minister's back just below his ribs and wondered why he didn't just knock me out. amazingly we still have a friendship and he still thinks fondly of me