Tyson vs. Jaco

Jan 11, 1986

Plaza Convention Center, Albany, New York, U.S.

There are things we cannot see. We cannot, for example, see the wind. Imagine a tornado without debris: all cause and no effect. From certain angles, we cannot see Mike Tyson’s fist, his punch – only the back of Jaco’s head, the snap of his neck. We cannot see the sportscaster when he calls Mike Tyson a human whirlwind. We cannot see the judges’ scorecards. This is how we walk by faith, shadowboxing an unseen opponent. The appearance of things: the substance, the presence, the way the human eye evolves. This is how we trust a transformation we cannot see.

ANDREW RIHN is the author of several chapbooks, including America Plops and Fizzes (2011). Most recently, he co-authored with his wife The Marriage of Heaven and Hell: An Election Cycle (2017) and The Day of Small Things (2018).