Forbidden Love is a Cubs DNA series where our staff waxes poetic about a player on a team other than the Cubs. Maybe even one you think they should hate. In this installment, Staci gives some love to New York Mets minor leaguer and former NFL, uh, "star" QB Tim Tebow.
We have a lot in common, Tim Tebow and I. Don't believe me?
Tebow's parents were Baptist missionaries in the Philippines. My parents were traveling Pentecostal evangelists.
Tebow by all rights should never have been born due to his mom's health issues. By all rights, I should have never been born due to my mother's physical issues. (We both appear to be okay.)
Both Tebow and I have very strong Christian beliefs and have been active in ministry since our teens--Tebow uses his celebrity as a platform, whereas I'm active in my local church and have served as both a senior and youth pastor and a music minister.
Maybe those similarities are why I have such a huge soft spot for our thick-necked friend from Florida.
I get it. I know at times Tebow has been a bit... much. Some of that honestly isn't his fault. Remember Tebowing? He didn't exactly ask for some random dude to start a page full of pics of him and his friends paying tribute and/or mocking Tim's silent, personal and pretty solemn practice of kneeling in prayer before his games started during his NFL career. Truly, Tebow wasn't hurting anyone--this was one you could blame on social media if it got on your nerves, like so many other things in life.
It's easy to mock Tebow's failed NFL career, especially since it took a path through the NY Jets locker room (my hubby might kill me for that one--hi hon! Love you! At least the Yankees are awesome!). But hey, a lot of us fail at our first careers. I set out to be a high school math teacher and here I am lobbying for a living and writing on this Cubs blog for free! We don't even have paid ads! Truly, Tim's just like 90% of all other Millennials out there!
And while I don't watch much college football, what I have seen of Tebow's analysis is actually pretty good. I applaud him for making some pretty tasty lemonade out of that particular set of lemons.
"But WAIT," you might be thinking. "Timmy boy's sucking up a roster spot on the Mets right now from someone who deserves it more!" Okay, yeah maybe. But you know what? I'm fine with it. I mean, it's the Mets... the hottest mess in MLB not named the Piebutts. Sure, they have Jacob deGrom and Polar Bear Pete, but those boys can't carry the franchise by themselves. Let Mets fans have a little fun while they wait to see who's hitting the IL next!
Finally, I'd be remiss if I didn't mention, the Tebow Foundation, Tim's charity he founded in 2010. Each year, Tebow's foundation dedicates millions of dollars to helping people with special needs in a whole variety of ways. You may not agree with his faith and he might not be on your list of Twitter follows, but there aren't many more benevolent causes than helping those among us who need a little (or big!) boost the way Tebow does.
So, maybe Tim's faith (and by extension, probably mine) isn't for you. And that's okay. But all in all I think Tebow's a pretty great guy. And if nothing else, he and his wife also have adorable doggos (I like to fight dirty sometimes).