I have to say that this is my favorite of all episodes of Contender. The fight was already written in history to be won by a bullet. Anthony Bonsante is the better boxer by far… in terms of determination, discipline, fairness and talent. Don’t get me wrong. Jesse Brinkley [my new ephemeral crush] is a good boxer too, make no mistakes about it. But the odds weren’t with him. He had to lose weight before the fight and re-focus. 2 rounds into the match and he was still trying to find it. Jesse didn’t bring any goals stepping into the ring. The traditional tapping of gloves before the match was foretelling Anthony that Jesse conceded to being the bullet’s target board that night. Then the world stopped on its axis when Jesse landed that uppercut right smack Anthony’s noggin. From there on, the bullet lost all its gunpowder. I saw that as soon as Brinkley’s uppercut connected, Anthony’s eyes lost its light. He staggered, fell on his side, and received the count. Even if Bonsante was expectant of a strong win, he didn’t see that hit coming.

I liked Anthony’s grace… as well as his passion and respect for boxing. Though his determination [others confuse with arrogance] can sometimes be piercing as a bullet, he accepted the loss no matter how unfortunate it went.

I simply love Mark Burnett’s reality shows because he veers towards human nature –the complexities of emotions and responses. Even if it’s all set up on a studio and it is still “TV,” he captures the human drama of situations we come to experience — RAW.

I almost got teary-eyed when I saw Bonsante kids’ concern for their father’s condition when he met the mat. Father’s love –sometimes flat but such a sweet thing. Bullet is a wonderful dad [But there’s no greater dad in my eyes than the one that comes home to us. Gulp. No crying for me now…] Kiddos, love your dad or anyone who stands as the dad in your life and be grateful for the difference he made in your life. Though it is not possible, love him far more than he has provided for you. Sacrifice for your loved ones –esp. for your dads and moms.

Spend time with them. Life is too short for trivial activities that you can do later on.

Love is eternal.